AR-News: (NC) PETA says All Creatures shelter should be shut down

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PETA: All Creatures should be shut down
Jonathan Rich
Times-News Staff Writer
jonathan.rich at hendersonvillenews.com





A dog is shown in a cage in the video that PETA shot at All Creatures Great 
and Small on May 20 and 22. (Special to the Times-News)
Zoom 




People for the Ethical Treatment for Animals, the world's largest animal 
rights organization, says Hendersonville's no-kill animal shelter All Creatures 
Great and Small should be closed for animal cruelty violations and unsanitary 
conditions. 

Wednesday, PETA's director of domestic animal and wildlife rescue and 
information department Daphna Nachminovitch mailed Hendersonville City Council a 
three-page letter describing a five-minute long videotape PETA received last month 
that was said to be taken on the shelter premises on Seventh Avenue May 20 
and 22. 

On that tape, PETA officials say there are at least 10 instances where dogs 
and cats are either injured and not receiving care or are living in what they 
think are "deplorable conditions." 

The letter to the City Council asked them to review the tape before they were 
scheduled to vote in closed session on whether or not to appeal Superior 
Court Judge Dennis Winter's ruling to overturn the Hendersonville Zoning Board of 
Adjustment's decision not to grant the shelter an operations permit. 

"Based on the information provided to our office about this case, it appears 
that the person operating All Creatures may be an animal hoarder," 
Nachminovitch wrote in her letter to the council. "In our experience, the only effective 
way to deal with hoarder situations is to seize all animals in the hoarder's 
custody, file criminal charges against the hoarder if possible and, at the very 
least, obtain a court settlement prohibiting the hoarder from owning or 
harboring animals in the future." 

Shelter President Kim Kappler said was unaware anyone had come onto shelter 
property with a concealed video camera, but after hearing about the allegations 
she said they were without merit. 

"We're open seven days a week and have nothing to hide," Kappler said 
Thursday afternoon. 

Shelter general manager Mary Dunn agreed. 

"This is a rescue center," Dunn said. "We're not in a pretty building and the 
place does smell, but we're doing the best we can to take responsibility for 
these animals who were neglected before we got them." 

Previous problems 

All Creatures Great and Small has operated at 1050 Seventh Ave. since 
November 1999. The facility houses 300 dogs and 150 cats and, like all animal 
shelters in the state, is to register with the N.C. Department of Agriculture and 
pass an inspection in order to operate. 

Last year, All Creatures paid a $2,500 fine to the N.C. Attorney General's 
office for operating without a proper license. 

All Creatures failed a previous inspection and appealed that decision in 
September 2001. In August 2001, state officials ordered All Creatures to close 
because of overcrowding conditions and other problems investigators deemed 
violations of health and animal welfare laws. 

A stay of operations was granted in October 2001, allowing the organization 
to operate only until homes were found for all its animals under the condition 
that it accepted no new pets for adoption. 

On April 2, 2003, an administrative judge in Raleigh dismissed all legal 
action against All Creatures and the "no-kill" organization continued operations 
under an agreement with the Department of Agriculture, although it still lacked 
the proper certificate of registration to operate as a regular animal 
shelter. 

The organization appealed a ruling by the Hendersonville Zoning Board of 
Adjustment in October against the nonprofit organization's application to be 
considered a shelter facility and stay in operation. 

City Council Attorneyto Appeal 

Last month Judge Winner ruled against the Zoning Board's decision and ordered 
All Creatures be given a permit to operate as a shelter. Thursday night, 
Hendersonville City Council met in closed session for 43 minutes before deciding 
City Attorney Sam Fritschner will appeal the latest legal turn of events. 

"We feel the judge made an error in interpreting the ordinance," Mayor Fred 
Niehoff said after the City Council returned into open session. "We have never 
been against All Creatures, the real issue is in regards to procedures. As far 
as we're concerned, there are just too many problems and many organizations 
have complained about how the shelter is being run." 
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