The 161 dogs "were mostly kept in air-conditioned spaces or had had fans, Espinoza said. In the backyard, a separate building housed more dogs, and there was an area for them to run and play. " The media really likes to play up the "too many dogs in too little space" angle but the truth is that animal people often go out of their way to share their own space and even MAKE space and buildings for animals. In addition, how many animals can fit in a given space is VERY fact specific; there cannot be a reasonable "one rule for all" rule as an 8 pound cat and a 150 pound dog simply aren't comparable and some people have an incredible talent for getting their animals to get along with one another! The article specifies the square footage of the house but FAILS to specify the square footage in other buildings, patios, porches, etc; let alone telling the size of the lot the house is on and there are some big lots in that neighborhood!
"For 10 years residents of the house bred and sold dogs without drawing much attention. But an anonymous tip Tuesday put Maria De Jesus Espinoza and her dog business in the spotlight." Nobody's really saying much about the dogs other than the usual vague, inflammatory nonsense from "officials"; here we see "terrible" and "horrible" - whatever those vague terms mean. As has become the habit of "officials" of late, they are making a great big deal out of something that is, at best, irrelevant.
In this case, "The bodies of four dogs were found in a freezer." OMG, do you mean that animals die and their dead bodies have to be dealt with? Horror of horrors! Put them in a freezer like a veterinarian does until they can be disposed? OMG, how terrible! SURELY only veterinarians are allowed to do that. All else should instantly stop life to deal with each dead animal in some extraordinary way! OMG, what terrible people to responsibly and efficiently deal with their dead animals so the LIVING animals can be tended!
According the the Houston SPCA, the dogs "were removed for general neglect and medical issues" and that's just more vague, unspecific allegations that don't appear to come close to the statutory requirements for seizing animals, at least not as set forth in Chapter 821 of the Texas Health and Safety Code. You can find a link to that in my first blog entry on this seizure, Dead Dogs. You might also be interested in reading Dead Bodies on Doorsteps and I will be doing more on the topic of disposal of the dead over the weekend.
If anyone is in need of links to most of the relevant civil statutes for the allegations that tend to be made in these cases, just check out Good Intentions and Dumbass JPs. Oh, hey, speaking of which...
"Espinoza and Cesareo Jaquez, her husband, are set to appear at a hearing Tuesday before Precinct 1 Justice of the Peace Dale Gorczynski." ARGH, Judge Dale, I'm so sorry for you both having to appear before him. Start planning your appeal now; that's my opinion! If you own that house, they're going to want that too!
- Dale's been JP since 1992. Got a law degree from UH in 1997 and licensed later that year.
- Dale's been playing judge on Animal Planet since 2003.
- wHO IS IN CHARGE OF THIS INSANE ASYLUM?
- First of all, this judge is splitting image for Jabba the Hutt. Slob does not go near enough in describing him and the way he manages his court. You have to be a lunatic and/or an imbecile to work for him. Everyone who works here is clueless and braindead.
- What a waste of time and money
- I was so disappointed in what I saw and heard in Dale Gorczynski's court room the day I accompied my friend to small claims court. In my opinion, Dale Gorczynski did not do a fair review of the case at hand. At one point I even thought he was chauvanistic towards my friend. She would not have taken the Court's time nor her time and money if this situation was not so important to her. She was depending on the Court to find a fair and equitable resolve to her case. I did not think my friend got her day in court with a 15 minute review of her case. What good is this court if in fact the public actually needs legal representation for any small claims review?
- Ever the comedian, Gorczynski told one
couple he removed the "obey" bit from the vows because, he "didn't think
it was good for a woman to stand before a judge and lie." (Are we supposed to think that chauvinistic statement is cute??)
- It turns out he judges every animal cruelty case for the SPCA, and they're often featured on Animal Cops. (Includes a VERY old photo of Judge Dale.
- Dale presided over the Boado case. (If you've been reading here for a while, you know Mr. Boado was summarily deprived of his animals AND his real estate.)
- Judge Dale gets a D when graded on his performance as a judge.
Well, I didn't even make a dent about what is said about Judge Dale in the above extractions from around the net but you get the idea.
As usual, it looks to me like Houston SPCA is thieving animals for their own store, to be sold via the "adoption" euphemism. There will, of course, be killing of animals along the way. They do seem to be getting better at picking nice products to thieve; reasonably healthy dogs that will be ready for adoption just as soon as the court rubber stamps the theft.
Looks to me like Houston SPCA is just straight up showing its disapproval of "breeding" animals (the horror) and of selling animals at flea markets (more horrors; when will we all realize that the Houston SPCA and its kin are the only ones authorized now to sell animals?!) and rather ignoring that this couple has been tending animals that get dumped on them by others; something that's been going on for years. I did notice they want to make a big deal out of the city licensing issue as well and then there's also the flea market issue.
"Espinoza said the SPCA approved of her work at the flea market every 15 or 22 days. Agency officials said they have never checked on her there." Oh, my, who shall I believe? Ms. Expinoza of course. I already know that Houston SPCA and "agency officials" are every bit as incapable of truth telling as SPCAT! And then there's this: "Espinoza and her neighbor of 10 years, Beatriz Estrada, said this was not SPCA's first visit, and they feel wronged by the agency taking the animals. 'SPCA had been out to her house many times,' Estrada said. 'If they had an issue with how many animals she had, they should have told her in the beginning.' " No doubt whatsoever in my mind that HSPCA has been out multiple times, effectively casing Ms. Espinoza's dogs to ensure they got a good haul from their thieving ways! KUDOS to Ms. Estrada for speaking up for her neighbor! Rally your community and fight back ladies!
"An official with the city's Department of Administration and Regulatory Affairs said Espinoza had neither a breeder's license nor a kennel's license for that address." What a curious way to phrase that. Does that mean she has one or the other at another address and is that her error or the city's???
"The SPCA said this was one of the largest rescues of dogs in its history." That would be this seizure from Ms. Expinoza and Mr. Jaquez. "In September of last year about 1,000 mixed animals were rescued from a Houston site." That would be the seizure from Mr. Boado. Gee, look at the names. Both cases involved people making sales at "flea markets". Discrimination? Cultural bias? Got a little profiling going on in Houston?
Rest of you think you're safe because you don't fit the profile? Think again! First they came for... If you don't help fight back now, there will be no one to fight back with you when your time comes and it WILL come. These wackos want all our animals!