Support near $100K for seized dogs

PALMER — The outpouring of support for 157 dogs seized from a Willow-area breeder continues, though it has slackened a bit from what it was in the immediate wake of the seizure.

Frank Rich, 53, faces 50 misdemeanor counts of cruelty to animals. Troopers said that the charges relate to 22 dogs found starved to death on the property and the 28 worst off of the survivors. The dogs were seized Jan. 10. Borough officials said one had to be euthanized almost immediately due to its health. Jail records Thursday afternoon showed Rich had posted bail.

In the wake of the seizure, Valley residents and Alaskans from Fairbanks to Homer have stepped up to raise money and gather and donate needed supplies. Alaska Job Corps nailed together 79 doghouses. Folks showed up with hay bales, blankets and towels, tarps and zip ties.

Linda Henning, publisher of Alaska Dog News, has participated from the start in the effort to get help to the shelter to cope with the influx of animals. She said she hopes the case spurs a policy change where it relates to animal cruelty.

“It’s been very heartwarming to see all this and I’m hoping that most of all the people really look at the way that we’re managing our regulations and have some way to enforce them,” Henning said.

Henning is one of two co-signers on an account set up at Wells Fargo to handle donations from the public. Thursday afternoon, she said that the last time she checked the account held $32,000. The plan is to give that money to the shelter and to specify that it be used to help with the cost of housing the animals seized from Rich.

She said that could mean paying for things to give to the dogs or making up for shortfalls in shelter funding that resulted from having to take on this extra burden.

“It’s really going to be determined by the shelter manager where the need is,” Henning said.

As she spoke she did a quick tally of what she’s heard the shelter has raised. Alaska Mill and Feed said it had taken in $40,000 in money and supplies for the shelter. Add the Wells Fargo account to that and the tally grows to $72,000. Some people donated directly to the shelter. A coffee stand in Anchorage collected donations. A sled dog racing organization in Willow is raising funds and so is a group in Fairbanks.

“A bunch of them are still collecting funds and I don’t know how much that will add up to,” Henning said. But, “I think we’re close to $100,000.”

Which, she said, is an impressive figure. As the shock of the case has worn off, she said, those donations have slowed.

“That’s really normal. That’s what we expected,” Henning said.

The Wells Fargo account is set up just for these dogs and will cease to exist when the need is gone. Henning said there’s an effort afoot among dog rescue groups to come up with some kind of shelter emergency fund so the next time such a situation arises it won’t send everyone scrambling.

“We can obviously see that that’s a problem and no one can foresee that we are going to have to save that many dogs, but what if we have a fire or someone who runs a kennel has a medical emergency and can’t take care of their dogs anymore?” Henning said.

Another problem – right now rescue groups are maxed out since many of them pulled dogs out of the shelter to make room for Rich’s dogs. If the borough had to seize another group of animals it’s unclear how that would be accomplished.

Meanwhile, the shelter says the dogs are gaining weight and returning to health. The shelter is starting to get into a routine. Staff intends to take some time next week to catch up on cleaning and to organize all the donations. Toward that, the borough announced the shelter would be closed Jan. 26.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.