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Animals Seized
in Dog-Fighting Bust to be Euthanized
January 17, 2006
Dolly Hollford says the fates of all 50 fighting pit bulls are grim. Because they are unadoptable, every last one is scheduled to be euthanized, but the process of getting there is slow and is preventing the shelter from operating normally. Hollford says the shelter is backed up on calls. She says right now workers can only handle emergencies. Hollford says the solution is clear...put the dogs to sleep. However, the animal shelter does not want to act too soon and jeopardize the criminal case against the dog's suspected owner and trainer. Which is why on Tuesday, a veterinarian was brought in to document and verify allegations that these dogs were in fact used for fighting. Hollford says that includes marking all of the scars and things of that sort. Hollford says the process is taking a lot longer than she would like, but for good reason. She says the department wants to make sure all of the (t)s are crossed and (i)s dotted. She says this is St. Landry's second bust, but after the first one, all of the dogs were shipped to New Orleans and officials in that area handled it from there. She says because of that, this is the first one the St. Landry Animal Shelter is actually handling. She says officials want to make sure they are doing it right. And, there is no doubt in her mind that these dogs were used for fighting. Hollford says from examinations, it has been determined all of the dogs, or most of them, were fighting dogs. She says if they are not fighting dogs, then they were bred to fight. She says there are puppies from the group that are vicious with other animals. To give you a timeline of what lies ahead for Allison Pettet, she was arrested on December 7th on charges of animal cruelty and dog-fighting.
If convicted, Pettet faces fines and jail time. According to the St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court's office, no court date has yet been set.