Woman Accuses Dog Rescue Group of Illegally Holding Pit Bulls
www.wbir.com
February 3, 2005, KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE -- A Fentress County woman says her show dogs were turned over to a sanctuary when she was arrested for animal abuse. Now that she has been found not guilty, she wants them back, but the rescue group says she'll have to pay them.
Stephanie Smith and her family breed American Pit Bull Terriers for the dog show ring. She says her dogs are like children to her.
"We've had them all their whole life. We show them all over the country. They're like family," says Smith
However, one group says the Smiths do not treat their dogs like family.
"They were all skin and bones. Their ribs sticking out... they were all in mud chained with very heavy chains to beat up dog houses," says Beverly Gilbert of Best Friends Sanctuary, a Fentress County animal rescue group.
In September, Smith was charged with animal abuse. The Sheriff's Department asked Best Friends Sanctuary to help remove eleven dogs and thirteen puppies from Smith's home. The sanctuary took all the dogs in.
In November, Smith was found not guilty, but Best Friends Sanctuary still has her dogs. Stephanie Smith says she wants her dogs returned to her.
"I just want my dogs back. I want my animals back before there's none left to get back," says Smith. "I feel that we were never convicted of anything. We were innocent, and they should have never took our animals in the first place."
Smith says Best Friends Sanctuary had some of her dogs neutered and spayed without her permission, a procedure that makes them worthless as show or breeding stock. The group admits Smith didn't give permission for the surgeries.
"They should have never done that," says Smith. "I didn't want my show dogs fixed. They can never be showed again. They destroyed my animals, basically."
Best Friends Sanctuary says they have the right to keep the dogs until Smith pays them what they spent taking care of her animals. Beverly Gilbert says they shouldn't be left with the bills.
"The Sheriff's Department got the original call and they called us in, but we're getting stuck with all the feeding bills, and all the bills, so we're just trying to recover some of our money," says Gilbert.
Best Friends Sanctuary says if Smith cannot pay them for the care of her dogs, they will accept ownership instead.
"Our concern is just getting the dogs into good homes where they're going to be fed and taken care of and not go back to being skin and bones like they were when we got them," says Gilbert.
But Stephanie Smith says she never abused her dogs and she will not stop fighting until she gets them back.
In addition to the dogs, there were also four horses and a llama taken from Smith's property.
