Montcalm County Animal “Shelter” Cruelty Exposed
Published, March 11, 2008
WOOD TV in Grand Rapids Michigan is investigating cruelty allegations against the Montcalm County Michigan Animal Control Shelter. It appears that allegations of animal cruelty led to the resignation of Animal Control Director Kevin Weaver. It will be up to county commissioners to decide who the new director will be.
Montcalm County has long been known as one of the worst animal control programs in the state of Michigan. Virtually no attempt is made to place dogs and cats in new homes. Rescue groups are never contacted to save animals and probably the worst, all unclaimed animals are literally given to a USDA Class B Research Dealer, R & R Research, owned and operated by Howard City's James Woudenberg. In exchange for taking all of these animals for free, Woudenberg “euthanizes” them for free for the shelter. Never mind that an undercover investigation by WOOD TV in the 1990's showed video of Woudenberg gassing animals in a rusty 55 gallon drum.
R & R Research, A History of Shady Dealings
R & R Research is regulated by the USDA. The Class B Dealer license allows R & R to buy and sell dogs and cats from shelters and individuals, to research institutions. The USDA regulations that apply to R & R are minimal at best, covering issues such as record keeping and kennel maintenance. USDA inspections occur at most four times each year. The USDA will investigate specific complaints, however, it should be noted that the USDA does not have a stellar history. The CC Baird case from Arkansas is an example of USDA inspections and investigations. The USDA allowed conditions at CC Baird's kennels to fester for years. It wasn't until an undercover investigation by Last Chance for Animals that the USDA was forced to act. In other words, USDA regulation has proved to be virtually meaningless.
The USDA cited R & R Research in March of 2005 for taking stray dogs and cats from the city of Howard City. Howard City does not have an animal shelter. According to the USDA, R & R somehow arranged to have stray animals given to it from city officials. The USDA found out and cited R & R and ordered it to stop taking animals from Howard City. This might seem to be a meaningless violation, but it is part of a pattern of behavior. In the 1990's R & R was ordered by the Michigan Attorney General to cease and desist after discovering that R & R listed itself as an animal shelter in the yellow pages. Maybe R & R just likes getting animals for free.
Yes, It's a For Profit Business
To listen to the B Dealers and their supporters, you would hear a tale of altruism, concern and philanthropy. The B Dealers claim they are helping humanity by taking pets from shelters and selling them to research institutions. They rarely include the fact that they are for profit corporations, making money off of each animal that they sell. For example, USDA records indicate that R & R sold 592 animals in 2004, leading to gross receipts of $99,723. In 2005 R & R earned gross receipts of $179,115 based on the sale of 611 animals. 2006 was a really good year, R & R gross receipts were $196,272 based on sales of 621 dogs and cats. Montcalm County is giving dogs and cats to R & R and based on its submission to the USDA, R & R resells the animals for an average of $311 each.
Cited for Animal Care Violations
In 2006, the USDA cited R & R for improperly transporting dogs. The poor creatures were chained to the side of a livestock trailer, which is illegal since the regulations demand that each animal is transported in an individual compartment. In 2005, a USDA inspection found sick cats, quarantined without a treatment plan. In both cases, it's clear that R & R's actions led to the suffering of animals.
An Unholy Alliance
The relationship between the Montcalm Animal Control Shelter and R & R has been going on for years. The only one who has benefited from the deal is R & R which resells animals at a huge profit. The animals don't win since they loose the chance at finding a new home. The county looses any income from adoptions and also the goodwill that a well run shelter generates. Instead, the relationship between the dealer and the shelter is a source of bad publicity for Montcalm county, with Michigan animal groups even calling for a boycott of all Montcalm businesses until the shelter stops selling to research.
If you think it's time that Montcalm County stop giving animals to a research dealer, contact Montcalm County Board of Commissioners.
WOODTV investigation