AR-News: (PA - US) Puppy Mill Alert

[Snugglezzz at aol.com]

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THE NEVER ENDING STORY!

Last year we brought you the saga of Daniel P. Esh, an Amish puppy miller
from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Esh wanted to expand the size of
Clearview Kennel, his already huge dog-breeding operation, even though the
kennel has not been in compliance under local ordinances for several years.
Esh also has continually violated the Animal Welfare Act as evident by the
numerous non-compliant items (NCI's) cited in his USDA - APHIS inspection   
reports.

We have continued to follow the case of Esh but there has been very little   
action until this past month.

After requesting the most recent USDA inspection reports on Clearview
Kennel, we were surprised to learn that Esh, on July 29, 2003, voluntarily
cancelled his Class B dealer's license. As of this date, Esh is not licensed
by the USDA. Esh said he didn't "need" the license as he "no longer
wholesales, only retails" his dogs.

PA Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement officials inspected the kennel on January    
16, 2004. Rick Burd, head of Dog Law Enforcement for the Bureau, filed
numerous citations for violations in areas of bedding, shelter & flooring,
lighting, ventilation and food & water receptacles. Due to the NCI's
discovered during the visit on January 16th, the Bureau refused to renew
Esh's kennel license for 2004. The Bureau also issued a cease and desist
order which is under appeal.

Esh Found Guilty of Violating PA Dog Law

Esh had his day in court on March 30, 2004 to answer the summonses.
Testifying for the state was Rick Burd; Mary Bender, Director of Pa Bureau
of Dog Law, waited outside the courtroom as a possible witness. Esh appeared
with his longtime attorney, Patrick Zimmerman. Four courtroom observers
included a local reporter, John Esh (Daniel's father), and two animal
advocates. After a three-hour trial, Gap District Judge Isaac Stoltzfus
found Esh guilty of two charges while dismissing the others. Prior to
sentencing, Judge Stoltzfus asked that his personal comments to Esh not be
made public. Esh was fined $600 plus court costs.

Here are some highlights from the trial:

* On the day of the state inspection, January 16, 2004, the
temperature was 12 degrees F. with a wind chill factor of minus 20 degrees.
No bedding was present in any of the dog's cages or boxes. Patrick
Zimmerman, Esh's attorney argued that the "insulated dog boxes" constituted
proper shelter and were a means of protection from the weather and that no
bedding was required.

* Burd stated there was a strong odor of ammonia in the barn; that no
windows were open because of the cold temperatures; no ventilation fans were
in operation, and that a Boxer or Pug had difficulty breathing. At this
point, Esh laid his head on the defense table, appeared to be nodding off or
bored with the proceedings.

* Wire flooring in several of the cages had broken wire, causing a
potential danger to the dogs. Wire flooring was sagging in some of the
cages.

* There was no lighting in the barn, making it difficult or impossible
to observe the dogs in cages in the middle rows. The law states that there
shall be "natural or artificial light to allow observation of the animals."
Gas lanterns were hanging from the ceiling but were not lit, according to
Rick Burd.

* Several cages were found to have shredded pieces of Styrofoam in
them. Esh stated that his daughter used Styrofoam bowls for feeding soft
food to puppies, making cleanup easier. Burd, who said that the mess left
behind compounded cleanup, refuted this point! (Esh was later admonished on
the dangers of the ingestion of Styrofoam by dogs.)

* Esh, on cross-examination, stated he was never told by anyone from
the state to provide bedding in the dogs' boxes.

* When asked how long he had been in business selling dogs, Esh paused
for a few moments and said, "I don't really know, maybe 15-20 years."

* When asked how many pens Esh had (to house dogs), he replied, "I
don't know. 150 pens?"

* When asked how many puppies he sold per month, Esh replied "20 to
30."

* When asked if he ever sold sick puppies or had any complaints from
customers, Esh replied "no." After another pause, Esh said "well maybe a few
minor things, like a cough."

* When asked about previous inspection reports and the deteriorating
condition of rooms in the barn, Esh replied that he was "trying to make them
pass until I can get a new permit. I want a new kennel."

* When asked if the USDA had informed him of previous violations, Esh
replied "no" and Zimmerman objected; Judge Stoltzfus sustained and would not
allow any previous USDA inspection reports to be introduced as evidence.
Zimmerman was allowed, however, to spend about 10 minutes looking over the
most recent inspection reports. They were inflammatory, so it's no wonder he
objected to their introduction.

* When asked by Burd if he (Esh) recalled reading the state
regulations that pertained to dog kennels, Esh replied "Not lately. I'm
sorry. I'm very sorry it had come to this point. If I would have known, I
would have done it."

These are just a few of the lies Esh told during his trial. He was
previously informed about these very exact violations on several occasions
by the USDA inspector. See reports dated 1/99; 12/99; 3/2000; 12/2000; 2/02;
1/03; and 5/03.

Esh was found guilty of not providing proper bedding for the dogs, and for
not repairing wire flooring in some of the cages. The other charges were
dismissed, not because the court felt Esh was not guilty, but that the state
didn't prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

According to the Bureau, Esh was denied his 2004 license application based
on the January inspection report and subsequent citations. Esh appealed that
decision and an administrative appeal hearing is pending. He then applied
for another license, stating he has made the necessary improvements to bring
his kennel into compliance. If his kennel passes the next inspection, Esh
could be re-licensed, making the administrative hearing a moot point.
The Bureau also told us that it issues licenses based on the number of dogs
a kennel has. It's up to the local municipalities to enforce their own
ordinances; in this case, Leacock Township is responsible for enforcing its
own ordinance of a maximum number of 250 dogs in township kennels. At last
count, Esh stated he had "about 450 dogs."

April 14, 2004

Not only is Daniel P. Esh NOT licensed by the USDA or state, we were shocked
to learn recently that Esh is also selling his dogs over the internet!
Gloria Brandt, a local resident and friend of Esh's who taxis him to and
fro (last seen driving him to a court appearance), is the webmaster for
Clearview Cute Puppies, another name Esh uses when he advertises his puppies
for sale. Make no mistake, it's Esh's kennel name, phone number and all the
dogs he breeds and sells in Clearview Kennel that are pictured on the
website. The phone number is now listed to Verna Esh, Daniel's wife. We
suspect that because of all the bad publicity over the past 15 years that
Daniel Esh is doing his best to hide from the public!

Here are the links to websites Esh and Gloria Brandt are using to hawk his
high-priced, sick puppies to the unsuspecting public:
Clearview Cute Puppies
www.clearviewcutepuppies.com
Clearview Cute Maltese
www.cutemaltese.com/index.html
www.cutemaltese.com/newarrivals.html
Clearview Cute Pugs
www.cutepugs.com/questions.html
www.cutepugs.com/newarrivals.html
Clearview Cute Bichons:
www.cutebichons.com/index.html
www.cutebichons.com/shop.html
Clearview Cute Yorkies:
www.cuteyorkies.com/index.html
www.cuteyorkies.com/newarrivals.html
Clearview Cute Cavalier King Charles Spaniels:
www.clearviewcutepuppies.com/cavalier.html

>From the websites:
For more information about our puppies, feel free to contact us:
By Phone: 717-768-0045
By Fax: 717-768-0095
By Email: Gloria at clearviewcutepuppies.com
By Regular Mail:
Clear View Cute Puppies
68 Clearview Road
Ronks, PA 17572
AT&T Reverse Directory: 717-768-0045
Verna Esh
68 Clearview Rd
INTERCOURSE, PA 17534
717-768-0045
Melvin & Gloria Brandt
2001 Old Philadelphia Pike
Lancaster, PA 17602
717-392-6126

E-mail Gloria at the following addresses to let her know we're on to her
association with notorious convicted animal abuser and puppy miller Daniel
P. Esh!

gloria at clearviewcutepuppies.com
maltese at clearviewcutepuppies.com
pugs at clearviewcutepuppies.com
bichons at clearviewcutepuppies.com
yorkies at clearviewcutepuppies.com

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

E-mail Leacock Township officials and urge them to deny Daniel Esh a permit
or at the very least, bring his kennel into compliance by capping the
maximum number of dogs (250) allowed by the township ordinance. Tell them
you are fed up with Esh's 15 plus years of violations, animal abuse,
convictions, scheming and conniving. They denied his earlier appeals, they
can do it again! AND PLEASE KEEP YOUR LETTERS POLITE!

Wilmer Hall, Zoning Officer
and Zoning Hearing Board Members:
Michael Sensening, Donald Eby, Richard Bomberger
Email: staff at leacocktwp.com
Fax: 717-768-8471
Phone: 717-768-8585

Leacock Township Secretary/Treasurer:
Frank E. Howe
Email: fehowe at leakcocktwp.com

Leacock Township Board of Supervisors:
Robert Alexander, Frank Howe, Jeff Martin, Jake Smucker, James Zimmerman
Email: staff at leacocktwp.com

When emailing the above, CC the following:
Lancaster County Commissioners:
Howard Shaub, Paul Thibault, Ron Ford
commish at co.lancaster.pa.us
Dennis Wolff, Secretary of Agriculture
dwolff at state.pa.us
Governor Edward G. Rendell
governor at state.pa.us

Also, contact the Lancaster County Tourism Board to tell them how you feel
about Lancaster County's dirty little secret: the hundreds of puppy mills
hidden in and behind barns, well out of view of the unsuspecting public; the
thousands of dogs living up to ten years in wire cages with no human
companionship or socialization. The Amish may live simply and eschew "modern
technology" but tell the Tourism Board to stop hiding behind another
little-known fact, that the Amish have cell phones, caller ID, and that they
sell dogs over the Internet!

EVERY e-mail about puppy mills to the Lancaster County Tourism Board is
forwarded to the Secretary of Agriculture.

Contact:
Wendy Nagle, President of the Pennsylvania Dutch Convention & Visitors
Bureau
E-mail: wnagle at padutchcountry.com

PA Dutch County - Lancaster County Tourism Board:
Email:info at padutchcountry.com
1-800-PA DUTCH (723-8824)
Cara O'Donnell, Lancaster County Tourism Board - Public Relations:
1-800-324-1518

For previous alerts and articles, please check out these links:

www.lancasteronline.com/print/2104.htm
www/lcanimal.org/alert/alert_048.htm
www.lcanimal.org/alert/alert_057.htm
www.lcanimal.org/alert/alert_062.htm

To view the WPVI ABC-Channel 6 (Philadelphia) video clip, May 7, 2003:
abclocal.go.com/wpvi/news/050603_SR_sickpups.html
For the Animals.

Campaigns Department
Last Chance for Animals
campaigns at lcanimal.org
310-271-6096 x21
http://www.lcanimal.org

Last Chance for Animals . 8033 Sunset Blvd. #835 . Los Angeles . CA . 90046



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