Breeder: Tschetter, Deb and Wayne
Address: 40361 210th St.
City, State Zip: Huron, SD 57350
Year: 2005
USDA License: Unlicensed
Date of CAPS Investigation: 2005-06-17
Breeds: Labrador Retrievers, Shelties, German Short Haired Pointers
There were 16 dogs and five puppies at the kennel at the time of investigation, including what appeared to be seven breeding pairs. Deb Tschetter told me while I was observing her kennel that she realized she had more than three breeding pairs, and that she lacks a USDA license.
The Tschetter’s kennel was an outdoor facility that consisted of a concrete slab underneath two rows of pens. One row was made of four chain link pens set adjacent to each other; the other row had three chain link pens set next to a pen made of thick-gauge galvanized wire. Each of the chain link pens contained either two Shelties or two Labrador Retrievers. The remaining galvanized wire pen contained a single German Short-haired Pointer.
The Pointer’s pen had a galvanized wire roof covering it with plastic mesh thrown over it. The wire had several sharp points sticking into the pen (3.1(c)(1)(ii)-Surfaces). A bale of metal wire was stored on top of the Pointer’s roof (3.1(b)-Condition and site).
There was over a week’s worth of fecal accumulation in each pen (3.11(a)-Cleaning of primary enclosures), which was smeared all over the floorings and dog houses (3.1(c)(3)-Surfaces). The fecal matter was particularly built up around the edges of the pen floorings and underneath the dog houses. Flies were swarming around every pen in the kennel (3.11(d)-Pest Control).
The concrete walkway that separated the two rows of pens was also covered in a layer of dried feces (3.11(a)-Cleaning of primary enclosures).
Each pen contained a plastic dog shelter which was either a barrel or dog house. Both lacked windbreaks (3.4(b)(3)-Shelter from the elements) and were not large enough for two dogs to fit in at once and lie in a normal manner or turn about freely (3.4(b)-Shelter from the elements).
Plastic and metal food and water dishes were placed on the pen floorings, and the food dishes were not placed so as to minimize contamination by excreta (3.9(b)-Feeding). Mrs. Tschetter mentioned to me while I was walking through the kennel with her, “I fed ‘em yesterday like I said, so that’s why they don’t have a lot of food.” The food dishes in the pens were either empty or contained very little food (3.9(a)-Feeding). The water bucket in the Pointer’s pen was filled with green algae water (3.10-Watering).
A nursing Sheltie mother and five one-week-old puppies were inside the Tschetter’s living room.
