Health of puppies may scuttle pit bull auction

I am very glad this auction won't take place. These dogs need to be spayed/neutered and in companion homes if possible, not returned to where they can contribute to the sad situation regarding this breed. Babesia is contagious and transmitted through breeding, dogs with babesia should not be bred.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/4185592.html
Sept. 13, 2006, 11:31PM
Health of puppies may scuttle pit bull auction
5 of the seized animals have died and most of the remaining 27 have virus or parasite
By CINDY HORSWELL
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

An unusual auction of pit bull puppies, confiscated from what authorities
believe was a nationwide breeding operation for dogfighting, may never be
held. A majority of the pups are sick and five have died. Animal rights advocates and the Houston Humane Society had feared the pups, from a valuable fighting dog bloodline, would fall into the wrong hands and be used to perpetuate the illegal blood sport. It would have been the first dog auction involving an animal cruelty case the Humane Society can ever recall in the Houston area. Such auctions are normally held only for livestock, authorities said. Hundreds of dogs seized. But now 27 puppies, the last remnant of 285 dogs seized from a 23-acre spread in Liberty County on Aug. 2, may not be suitable for the auction block.

The other 258 dogs were euthanized after experts determined they could not be rehabilitated as pets. However, the puppy auction has not been scheduled because the Humane Society recently discovered a majority of the pups are sick from Parvo (a deadly virus) or Babesia (a blood parasite) they had contracted prior to the seizure. At the same time, investigators have disclosed that possibly seven of the most valuable dogs from the breeder's stock, estimated to be worth about $1 million, may have been transported out of state before the seizure. We had pictures and videos that had showed all the breeder's pens and carriers were full. But when we returned with a seizure order, a couple of pens were empty and some carriers were missing," said Liberty County Sheriff Sgt. Kenny Dagle. He said it took a couple of days to arrange for an animal cruelty investigator to come to the scene and then secure the seizure order, as authorities had gone to the site initially to investigate a fatal home invasion.

The breeder, Thomas F. Weigner Jr., 27, bled to death after being shot in the leg by three masked intruders. His wife, Julie Laban, their three children and her parents witnessed the shooting while bound with tape. Dagle said the intruders are believed to have been searching for $100,000 cash that Weigner recently won at a dogfight in Brazoria County. The intruders did not harm the other family members and missed a couple of thousand dollars in cash because "they weren't expecting it to be in plain sight on a closet shelf," Dagle said. Investigators also discovered a pound of marijuana at the house. "Neither Weigner nor his wife had a job, other than the dogs. But they had paid $215,000 in cash for their home and property and were making payments on three nice new cars," he said. Worldwide business Investigators are tracking down many leads on the homicide as data taken from the house showed the breeder was doing business "all over the world," Dagle said.

Laban went to Michigan to bury her husband and has not returned. She could not be reached for comment. Her attorney, Dick Wheelan of Houston, said his client was unable to post
the $30,000 bond necessary to have an independent examination of the dogs
that were confiscated. "We don't know the condition of these puppies," he said. "We also don't agree with the sweeping generalizations made that these dogs are aggressive." Wheelan's client has denied that the pit bulls were ever being raised to fight, and has argued the animals should be returned to herz. But Liberty County Justice of the Peace Phil Fitzgerald ruled the dogs should be seized because of abuse. Mark Beausoleil, assistant Liberty County attorney, introduced evidence that showed the dogs were possibly being bred to fight. He pointed to heavy chains hanging for a treadmill and a large tank, in which a dog would be
placed to swim and could not escape, that were used for endurance training. Parvo is a highly contagious intestinal virus, and none of the puppies had been properly vaccinated against it. "This illness can be 50 to 75 percent fatal even with excellent medical care," said Dr. David Shell, a Humane Society director and veterinarian. The blood parasite, on the other hand, is a chronic illness that can be difficult to treat and require blood transfusions, Shell said. cindy.horswell@chron.com