found here
Amish dog breeding kennel burns down
JEFFREY SIMMONS/Staff
The Wytheville Enterprise
Friday, March 23, 2007
An early Wednesday morning fire destroyed a breeding kennel housing 192 dogs and puppies being bred for profit.
Misty stretched out underneath the evergreens.
A few feet away, charred, spindly timbers like burnt matchsticks jutted into the morning sky. Twisted bits of blackened metal ? some recognizable others not ? littered the ground.
The rat terrier with the muddy paws and penchant for belly rubs seemed oblivious to the drama unfolding around her on a picturesque ridge in Bland County's Mechanicsburg community.
She probably didn't understand just how lucky she was.
One day earlier, 192 of her caged kindred perished in a fire that's swept through the local and national media and kindled controversy in the county and beyond.
With a copy of Thursday's Roanoke Times in hand and a battery-operated headlamp on his wide-brim Amish hat, Ivan Schmucker Jr. Thursday recounted the events leading up to a blaze that wiped out an estimated $106,000 worth of purebred adult dogs and puppies, along withy property and tools.
"We're pretty disturbed this morning," said Schmucker (known as "Junior" to his neighbors) who operates Dogwood Kennels along with his two sons.
At around 1 a.m. Wednesday, one of those sons checked on the dogs in what the family called its "whelping facility" where mother dogs and their puppies were kept in elevated metal cages. The barn-like structure also protected construction supplies (lumber and shingles), buggies and harnesses, Schmucker said.
Everything was fine during the routine check, and the son returned to bed in the family's nearby hand-built log cabin.
At around 3:30 a.m., Schmucker's wife went outside on the porch for firewood, but didn't notice anything amiss at the kennel.
It wasn't until Ivan Schmucker awoke for his 4:30 a.m. prayers that he discovered something wasn't right in the tin and wooden structure.
"I seen flames coming out the window," he said, and when he tried to open the kennel door, "It (the smoke) knocked me backwards." That door knob, but no door, rested in the grass Thursday morning near what was once the building's front entrance.
"Our first goal was to go out and rescue the dogs," Schmucker added.
Shoeless and still pulling on his pants, Schmucker's son ran to the family's telephone, which is kept in a small building near Byrnes Chapel Road, and called the fire department.
Hollybrook-Mechanicsburg Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jerry Farlow got the call around 4:38 a.m. and couldn't understand why crews were being sent to a "dog house" fire.
The reason became obvious, though, after the first member got to the residence.
"It was fully engulfed when we got there," he said.
Assisted by firefighters from Bland and Rocky Gap, the department fought the blaze until 8:13 a.m.
No humans were injured, but none of the dogs inside the building survived.
Started last February, Dogwood Kennels raises and breeds a variety of smaller dogs such as Yorkshire terriers, Chihuahuas and shitzus for individuals and pet brokers, Schmucker said.
"Lap dogs are really popular right now," he said.
The operation is regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Schmucker said the family had taken many steps to make sure the dogs were care for properly.
Along with installing solar-powered exhaust fans in the whelping building, the family also put in generator-powered air purifiers three months ago, the father said.
"Our main objective is to work with the public and put a healthy puppy on the market," he said.
Some animal rights activists, though ? including some quoted in the Roanoke Times issue Schmucker carried ? believe that operation's like Dogwood Kennels ? sometimes called "puppy mills" ? are inherently inhumane.
In fact, according to an Internet search, some Amish-run kennels in Pennsylvania have become notorious for reportedly mistreating the pets they raise.
"They are bred only for profit," said Lila Borge Wills, president of the Virginia Partnership for Animal Welfare and Support, when talking about the Amish and other large-scale kennel operations. Founded in 1998, Virginia PAWS supports animal rights issues in Floyd, Giles, Montgomery and Pulaski counties and the city of Radford.
"I was horrified ? outraged," Wills said about her initial reaction to word of Wednesday's fire and animal deaths.
Concerned about genetics and with controlling animal populations by requiring owners to spay or neuter their pets, responsible breeders don't sell to pet stores or brokers, according to Wills.
"It's not about money at all," she said.
In the Schmuckers' case, Wills also questioned why so many animals were kept in one place without an evacuation plan or sprinkler system. While they're not 100 percent sure, fire officials believe a kerosene heat lamp underneath the whelping cages may have started the fire. There were two wood stoves in the building but neither was lit at the time of the blaze.
While harboring no ill will toward his critics, Schmucker said he cared for his dogs and had observed and was troubled by some of the poorly managed kennels activists cite.
"I didn't realize how attached to the dogs I was until I don't have them," he said.
Although the mothers and offspring died in the fire, the Schmuckers still have around 100 dogs left in their outdoor kennels behind the destroyed building.
"We're going to build back," he said.
Family members, however, may hit a snag as they try to get the operation running again.
According to Bland County Administrator Jonathan Sweet, the Schmuckers' property is zoned as an agricultural district. As such, he said, the family must apply for and receive a conditional use permit before it can legally operate a kennel.
"The county was unaware of its operation," Sweet said on Thursday.
Violating the county's zoning ordinance is a misdemeanor offense, but Sweet said the county was still investigating the matter and hadn't given any thought to any "punitive measures" against the family. He too expressed sadness at the "tragic loss."
Bland County doesn't require business licenses, and the Schmuckers had paid a $25 fee to get the county's special rate on dog tags. While the yearly tags normally cost $4 or $6 per animal, the county also offers the $25 deal for five or more dogs. That fee could cover five or 500 dogs, according to Animal Control Officer James Belcher.
While Belcher went to the Schmucker's kennel on Wednesday, he said it was it his first visit.
"I never had any reason to go up there," he said. "?As far as I could tell, it was a clean, humane operation."
Relying on help from fellow community members, the Schmuckers plan to bring in a large Dumpster next week to begin cleaning up the scorched remnants of their livelihood.
"(It's) one of those things you turn over to the Lord and go on," Ivan said.
JEFFREY SIMMONS/Staff
The Wytheville Enterprise
Friday, March 23, 2007
An early Wednesday morning fire destroyed a breeding kennel housing 192 dogs and puppies being bred for profit.
Misty stretched out underneath the evergreens.
A few feet away, charred, spindly timbers like burnt matchsticks jutted into the morning sky. Twisted bits of blackened metal ? some recognizable others not ? littered the ground.
The rat terrier with the muddy paws and penchant for belly rubs seemed oblivious to the drama unfolding around her on a picturesque ridge in Bland County's Mechanicsburg community.
She probably didn't understand just how lucky she was.
One day earlier, 192 of her caged kindred perished in a fire that's swept through the local and national media and kindled controversy in the county and beyond.
With a copy of Thursday's Roanoke Times in hand and a battery-operated headlamp on his wide-brim Amish hat, Ivan Schmucker Jr. Thursday recounted the events leading up to a blaze that wiped out an estimated $106,000 worth of purebred adult dogs and puppies, along withy property and tools.
"We're pretty disturbed this morning," said Schmucker (known as "Junior" to his neighbors) who operates Dogwood Kennels along with his two sons.
At around 1 a.m. Wednesday, one of those sons checked on the dogs in what the family called its "whelping facility" where mother dogs and their puppies were kept in elevated metal cages. The barn-like structure also protected construction supplies (lumber and shingles), buggies and harnesses, Schmucker said.
Everything was fine during the routine check, and the son returned to bed in the family's nearby hand-built log cabin.
At around 3:30 a.m., Schmucker's wife went outside on the porch for firewood, but didn't notice anything amiss at the kennel.
It wasn't until Ivan Schmucker awoke for his 4:30 a.m. prayers that he discovered something wasn't right in the tin and wooden structure.
"I seen flames coming out the window," he said, and when he tried to open the kennel door, "It (the smoke) knocked me backwards." That door knob, but no door, rested in the grass Thursday morning near what was once the building's front entrance.
"Our first goal was to go out and rescue the dogs," Schmucker added.
Shoeless and still pulling on his pants, Schmucker's son ran to the family's telephone, which is kept in a small building near Byrnes Chapel Road, and called the fire department.
Hollybrook-Mechanicsburg Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jerry Farlow got the call around 4:38 a.m. and couldn't understand why crews were being sent to a "dog house" fire.
The reason became obvious, though, after the first member got to the residence.
"It was fully engulfed when we got there," he said.
Assisted by firefighters from Bland and Rocky Gap, the department fought the blaze until 8:13 a.m.
No humans were injured, but none of the dogs inside the building survived.
Started last February, Dogwood Kennels raises and breeds a variety of smaller dogs such as Yorkshire terriers, Chihuahuas and shitzus for individuals and pet brokers, Schmucker said.
"Lap dogs are really popular right now," he said.
The operation is regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Schmucker said the family had taken many steps to make sure the dogs were care for properly.
Along with installing solar-powered exhaust fans in the whelping building, the family also put in generator-powered air purifiers three months ago, the father said.
"Our main objective is to work with the public and put a healthy puppy on the market," he said.
Some animal rights activists, though ? including some quoted in the Roanoke Times issue Schmucker carried ? believe that operation's like Dogwood Kennels ? sometimes called "puppy mills" ? are inherently inhumane.
In fact, according to an Internet search, some Amish-run kennels in Pennsylvania have become notorious for reportedly mistreating the pets they raise.
"They are bred only for profit," said Lila Borge Wills, president of the Virginia Partnership for Animal Welfare and Support, when talking about the Amish and other large-scale kennel operations. Founded in 1998, Virginia PAWS supports animal rights issues in Floyd, Giles, Montgomery and Pulaski counties and the city of Radford.
"I was horrified ? outraged," Wills said about her initial reaction to word of Wednesday's fire and animal deaths.
Concerned about genetics and with controlling animal populations by requiring owners to spay or neuter their pets, responsible breeders don't sell to pet stores or brokers, according to Wills.
"It's not about money at all," she said.
In the Schmuckers' case, Wills also questioned why so many animals were kept in one place without an evacuation plan or sprinkler system. While they're not 100 percent sure, fire officials believe a kerosene heat lamp underneath the whelping cages may have started the fire. There were two wood stoves in the building but neither was lit at the time of the blaze.
While harboring no ill will toward his critics, Schmucker said he cared for his dogs and had observed and was troubled by some of the poorly managed kennels activists cite.
"I didn't realize how attached to the dogs I was until I don't have them," he said.
Although the mothers and offspring died in the fire, the Schmuckers still have around 100 dogs left in their outdoor kennels behind the destroyed building.
"We're going to build back," he said.
Family members, however, may hit a snag as they try to get the operation running again.
According to Bland County Administrator Jonathan Sweet, the Schmuckers' property is zoned as an agricultural district. As such, he said, the family must apply for and receive a conditional use permit before it can legally operate a kennel.
"The county was unaware of its operation," Sweet said on Thursday.
Violating the county's zoning ordinance is a misdemeanor offense, but Sweet said the county was still investigating the matter and hadn't given any thought to any "punitive measures" against the family. He too expressed sadness at the "tragic loss."
Bland County doesn't require business licenses, and the Schmuckers had paid a $25 fee to get the county's special rate on dog tags. While the yearly tags normally cost $4 or $6 per animal, the county also offers the $25 deal for five or more dogs. That fee could cover five or 500 dogs, according to Animal Control Officer James Belcher.
While Belcher went to the Schmucker's kennel on Wednesday, he said it was it his first visit.
"I never had any reason to go up there," he said. "?As far as I could tell, it was a clean, humane operation."
Relying on help from fellow community members, the Schmuckers plan to bring in a large Dumpster next week to begin cleaning up the scorched remnants of their livelihood.
"(It's) one of those things you turn over to the Lord and go on," Ivan said.
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