Selah Couple Apply for Kennel Permit

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Story Published: Aug 26, 2009 at 5:46 PM PDT

By Melissa Wagner

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SELAH -- Accused of running a "puppy mill". A Selah couple wants to board dogs again. They were told to get rid of the dogs in January. Tom and Sharon Beatty didn't have a kennel license despite breeding dogs for 30 years. They got that license and animal rights groups got upset. But who's telling the "real" story?

Eight months ago, the Beattys were raising dogs in this kennel. But a visit from animal control forced them to give up the dogs. They had too many and weren't licensed. " Most of them I surrendered," said Tom Beatty.

Surrendered to a group called Ginger's Pet Rescue. That group claims the dogs were abused and in terrible shape. But when I questioned Randy Sutton with Animal Control, he told me he had documentation of only one dog with a skin condition. Ginger didn't just take the dogs, she bought them for about a hundred dollars a piece. Now she's selling them for more. Beatty said, " This dog rescue thing is big. Question: "So they say they're rescuing the dogs and pay you for them, then turn around and sell them for more money?" Answer: "Yes, about $400 to $500 on the internet."

In fact, the Beatty's found several of their dogs online. I spoke with an associate of Ginger's Pet Rescue who says they're not out to make a profit. They spend a lot of money on medical bills for rescued dogs.
They also get donations that keep them afloat. She couldn't explain to me why the group was selling the dogs for so much. In the meantime, the Beattys are trying to get their kennel back up and running.

Now the Beatty's before had about 100 dogs in this kennel, but because of a recent ruling by the Governor, they will only house 40 dogs. That senate bill doesn't take affect until next year, but the county says that's the limit to get a permit. Other changes say they may also have to take down the top row of these crates. The Beatty's have just 90 days to show they've got everything in order, to get final approval to move their dogs back in.

Some animal rights activists disagree with the findings of the Animal Control investigator. They call the Beatty's kennel a puppy mill and do not think they should have a license. Stay tuned. There could be much more to this story in the days ahead.

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