By Mark E. Jolly
Staff Writer
Puggy and Zoe were left in a grooming dryer for too long —without anyone checking on them.
The kennel told her no problem, come right over. When she arrived, they had
two of her dogs —Lucky and Otis —waiting for her. Showalter took them to the
car, undid their leashes and came back for the two females.
Showalter said after waiting, and waiting and waiting, the kennel's owner
came up to her.
Her 51/2-year-old Puggy was dead.
And when Showalter held the body, she could tell what was wrong.
"She was so hot. My arms hurt she was so hot," she said. "I'm screaming. I'm
crying. I called my husband at work. I was hysterical. And then I thought, 'Oh
my God, where's Zoe?' "
The kennel staff still hadn't mentioned or brought out Showalter's other
female pug, a 4-year-old. Zoe was the daughter of Puggy and Otis.
They brought out Zoe's body wrapped in a towel, also hot.
The kennel had groomed the dogs before Showalter picked them up, at her
request, and had put them under drying devices for 45 minutes without checking
on them.
Showalter checked on Otis and Lucky, the two dogs she'd put in the car, and
realized they were having trouble breathing. She took them to Arch Animal
Hospital in Chalfont, where they were rubbed down with alcohol and given
medication and sedatives. Their temperatures were measured at 104 degrees.
Showalter had the bodies of her two female dogs with her and asked the
veterinarians to check them to learn the cause of death. Their temperatures
registered at 108 degrees, the highest the thermometer would go. The vet's
assessment was hyperthermic asphyxiation; the dogs suffocated in the heat. Pugs
often have trouble breathing because of their facial structure, and heat can
spark respiratory problems.
Hilltown police cited Patricia M. Buerger of Hickorybrook Farm with cruelty
to animals under a section that makes it a summary offense to neglect an animal
placed in one's care. The two female dogs were left in the dryer for 45 minutes,
"accidentally resulting in their death," the citation says.
"Nobody's saying it's intentional," said District Attorney Diane Gibbons.
However, she said, "You just can't put a dog in a heat situation for 45
minutes."
Under the animal cruelty statute, the penalty for a summary offense is a fine
of $50 to $750 or up to 90 days in prison.
Staff at the Hickorybrook Farm kennel referred questions about the incident
to their attorney, Mel D. Kardos, who said the deaths of the pugs were a
horrible accident.
"This kennel has been around for 30 years and has an excellent reputation,"
he said. "The owner of the kennel is really devastated by this. The kennel
accepts full responsibility, but it wasn't an intentional act. It was just a
tragic mistake."
Kardos said he had been told someone was supposed to check on the animals
while they were being dried but apparently forgot.
DOYLESTOWN TWP. -Maryanne Showalter
called Hickorybrook Farm kennel in Hilltown last Monday afternoon to find out if
her four pugs would be ready if she came to pick them up 10 minutes later. She
and her family had been away since July 11, visiting her mother-in-law.
Lucky, one of the two surviving male pugs owned
by Maryanne Showalter, was treated by the family's veterinarian after
being left in a grooming dryer. Unfortunately for the Showalters, their
two females did not survive the heat. (Photo: Leslie Ballantyne)
Sunday, July 22, 2001