By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
The (Longview) Daily News writes about how no requirement for permits or licenses for dog breeders in Lewis County allows unhealthy conditions to go unchecked.
Reporter Natalie St. John reports residents can refuse inspectors access to facilities.
St. John describes how it was a tip about possible marijuana growing three years ago in Toledo that led authorities to one of the worst cases of animal abuse investigators had ever seen; where many of 157 dog were sick or malnourished and feces covered nearly every surface.
Read more here
You are trying to take a common housecat, ‘felis familiaris’ and compare it to NATIVE WASHINGTON STATE WILDLIFE!!!!
First of all, ‘felis familiaris’ is NOT NATIVE to the North American continent at all. The breed of cat that most americans call a ‘pet’ is descended from the Middle East.
That being said, to allow it ‘free-range’ to do as it pleases and use taxpayer funds to force police to arrest, imprison, or fine people who kill such vermin, is just plain wrong.
If you love your pet, keep it indoors. If you can’t afford to feed it, instead of letting it roam for ‘free-range’ endangered species of bird, try finding it a GOOD HOME where it can eat cat food in safety. Heck, if you want, go to Wal-Mart and buy a parakeet and have fun watching your cat chase, hunt, torture, and kill it for fun. I’m sure you and your whole family can have countless house of enjoyment.
F.Y.I.: I hope you know that a “wild-pet” is an oxymoron.
“Cat’s kill as a means for survival by natural instinct … just because man has domesticated them, does not mean the instincts given them by nature are removed. It’s a freakin’ food chain theory… ever heard of that?”
Which is why you KEEP YOUR PETS INDOORS!!!! Including snakes!!!! No, ESPECIALLY SNAKES, unless you want them killed.
“Hawks and eagles kill snakes, rodents, birds and cats.”
Hawks as pets are CLOSELY regulated by the dept. of fish and wildlife. AGAIN, if your pet HAWK or EAGLE strays into someone else’s property, you may never see it again. However, you can’t kill hawks or eagles so your point is moot.
“The more you talk, the more evident it becomes that you know not of what you speak”
I know that FALCONRY is legal in washington state and you can trap and hunt with hawks. I also know that pet owners in Lewis County are under the false impression they can let their “BELOVED PETS” roam aimlessly about the neighborhood killing indiscriminately and get away with it unharmed.
Tell me one person who let’s a pet snake roam the neighborhood!
Falsetto – you are SO wrongly informed. Cat’s kill as a means for survival by natural instinct … just because man has domesticated them, does not mean the instincts given them by nature are removed. It’s a freakin’ food chain theory… ever heard of that? Snakes kill birds.. is that ok? Hawks and eagles kill snakes, rodents, birds and cats. Species fight and kill amongst themselves. The more you talk, the more evident it becomes that you know not of what you speak.
Tolerance for whom? Should birds, squirrels, and other innocent animals who have families and just want to live, should they tolerate being killed by somebody’s pet cat simply because the pet’s owner didn’t care enough to keep it indoors?
There seems to be no tolerance for the animals cat’s kill merely for fun, so why should cat’s recieve tolerance from anybody?
But the fact is, cat’s kill simply for the fun of it and if they are found roaming around in someone’s private nature sanctuary where they feed endangered songbirds, then the cat deserves whatever it gets.
So long ass-cat.
Apparently there’s no such thing as “tolerance” either.
“But No….. then I would have sinned and fell short of the Glory of God!”
There’s no such thing as “sin”. It was invented by a bunch of power-hungry zealots thousands of years ago. There is however a right and a wrong. It would be wrong to go out and shoot a cat in someone else’s yard. It would be right to shoot a cat in your own yard.
Cats are filthy animals that carry pathogenic diseases that can make people very sick. Also, cats kill small aminals indiscriminately and aren’t able to distinguish a native squirrel to an invasive one. Neither can they tell the difference between an extremely endangered songbird and a common starling.
Anyone who allows their “pet” cat to roam free doesn’t deserve the right to ‘own’ pets.
Hey, DCE – I wasn’t condemning you for not catching the cats… I was just sharing my story of what happened in my neighborhood in a similar situation. Geez, take a chill pill… not everything is meant to be a slam on you. I know the frustrations of nutty cats.
So I get It, I should catch the cats in live traps and pay myself an hourly wage like Mr. Tietzel does and deduct it from my taxes. Geez by the time I’m done I won’t owe anything… Because I wouldn’t want the Pathetic County that has screwd the tax payers over and over again to Tax me without Representating Me. Failing to come pick up the ferrel cats is what Tax Payers can expect from Lewis County when it comes to your tax at work. After all the sand bags from the flood are still laying next to the Centralia City Hall and that was 4 years ago. Don’t think so? drive by and take a look for yourself. The facts are, there should be more programs for this kind of animal problem in L.C. My Neighbors are Meth Addicts and could care less about their 30 unnutered Cats roaming the neighborhood. I guess I could always do what a Centralia City Official and Pastor did and that’s shoot them!. But No….. then I would have sinned and fell short of the Glory of God!
DCE – we had problems with cats running loose in our neighborhood a couple years ago. I called the shelter to find out what to do. Firstly, they didn’t want me to bring them in because they “probably belong to someone since they were apparently socialized…. cats travel xyz distance from their homes regularly… blah, blah, blah.” The cats were “socialized” because the “neighborhood” was caring for them… good grief! Once I convinced shelter personnel that they did not belong to any one person, family or household, they then said, well, then they are “feral.” There was also some discussion about “once you’ve fed a stray, you’ve essentially adopted it and now you’re responsible for it.” Yeah, that pissed us off too. We were told we could obtain “live traps” to catch them and take them to the shelter. I didn’t know there was anyone else to call, i.e., Code Enforcement, and the shelter did not volunteer that information… I guess if the cats don’t “belong” to anyone, there is no code to be enforced.
There is always an issue of “feral” cats in rural counties… they can be much like pesky rodents… Rural counties handle the issue of cats completely different than others. We just don’t have the resources, e.g., larger tax base from which to draw, in order to deal with these issues.
Now, don’t all you cat lovers get pissed at me for referencing feral cats as akin to pesky rodents. I too love cats, but unless you’ve had to deal with cat infestation, you have no idea what it is like.
Ultimately, we DID use live traps to take them to the shelter, where I’m sure they were “humanely” euthanized.
Guiltybystander – the reference was: “After all the Lewis County’s Code Enforcement Officer Teitzel, has failed to remove the 30 or more stray cats running loose in my neighborhood.” Seemingly benign, except DCE has brought this to our attention at every time opportunity. Usually, every post by DCE involves how the storyline effects him. All-in-all, I agree with his assessment of the puppy mill issue and I said that.
Not sure where DCE referenced himself in his last post (which WAS thoughtful, BTW).
DCE, love what you said, but why did you have to go a make it about you and your plight.
Michael Vick would be so proud, but really puppy mills are a product of society. Everyone wants a pet and some people end up getting to many pets and that’s when it becomes a problem. Pet Hoarding is no different than Hoarding belongings, or any other type of Hoarding sickness. AKA The Pack Rat Syndrome… Also being an Elderly American Poses challenges too, Hyper Inflation is causing many people to find new ways to make a living and unfortunately Puppy Mills are one way to make a semi honest living. I guess Puppy Mills are just the lower class of breeders in the great scheme of things.
It’s my opinion this person is a victim, animal lover and has a boarder line hoarding issue that can be corrected. But to call this person a criminal would be criminal. After all, look at how chickens, cattle and pigs are raised. Basically people have more feelings for dogs than a Chicken. But I’m sure someone would argue the chicken theory…. Puppy Mills are here to stay, After all the Lewis County’s Code Enforcement Officer Teitzel, has failed to remove the 30 or more stray cats running loose in my neighborhood. Taxation without Representation is what you can expect from your local government, they take the money but fail to provide services.
Sunshinegirl, I too know exactly the place to which you are referring. It was on Isbell Rd and I drove past it daily. I worried about those poor dogs during the winter as well and am certain the people had been reported, unfortunately it seems nothing could be done on “hearsay”. Those particular people advertised their dogs on eBay. They actually moved away last year and are no longer occupy that singlewide in Mossyrock. Unfortunately, it wasn’t far away…they still in Lewis County, however reside in Onalaska now. I certainly hope they didn’t set up shop again, but it’s doubtful they have ceased. No telling if there is anyone nearby to see the sad environment and poor existence those pups are forced to endure. It’s sickening.
It’s great that this article was written. Creating an awareness and pointing out the issues within Lewis County is a great start on trying to create change. It sounds as though more staff is needed in order to investigate and charge those involved in the puppy mill business. Laws need to change. With change, of course, could mean more taxes (Morning Coffee), but I am one who wouldn’t mind my tax dollars being sent towards this change. Perhaps people will care enough, not only about providing a voice for the voiceless, but about their community to demand a change. It’s easy to turn away and play the “out of sight out of mind”, but the more media coverage and people who care enough to get involved, the better.
PEOPLE – more services and regulation = tax increases to the residents. Of those who complain about the lack of programs and regulations, which of you is the first to volunteer to pay more property tax, sales tax, etc. to the county which you so dislike?
I lived in Mossyrock for a minute and there is a puppy mill there that has dozens and dozens of little dogs . lots of Yorkies and Weiners. I used to walk past there and it was amazing how many there are. I only lived there a couple of years and Mossy is a nice little town. Depending on who you talked to some people were appalled by the sheer numbers . I wondered at the smell. When I would walk by the noise was pretty loud also. I am not accusing anyone of any wrong doing but how would you keep up with it all. There was only a small single wide trailer and so many lttle dogs. I worried about the winter months. Not to mention food , medical treatment , etc. I think there should be some monitering , but like everyone else who live out here in the country I do not want too much much governing. I just worried about all those little guys. I know thing can get out of hand . These lttle guys all looked ok but I am no expert.
Where is the Chronline reporters , why aren’t they raising a stink about these puppy mills, and this seems worse than all the meth problems. Animals can’t speak for themselves, they have no choice unlike meth heads, who choose to do it to themselves.. One owner can have the possibility of having 400 dogs in a yr.. me thinks, commissioners or who-ever is in charge need to re-think the laws governing puppy mills. Everyone needs to read this article. All I can think is, maybe the person who writes about floride in the water is right, these “responsible owners” must be drinking too much water. What it is all about is $$$$.
There are no permits for horses, cows, cats, chickens or for that matter, even children.