Woman accused in hoarding case to help find buyers for dogs
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ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- A Piedmont woman accused of hoarding animals was in court Tuesday and will be allowed to assist in finding buyers for the animals.
Kay Conway of 71554 West Lake Road, Piedmont appeared in Belmont County Western Division Court before Judge Eric Costine, who ruled she could provide names of people interested in purchasing the more than 30 dogs that are now in the custody of the Belmont County Hoof & Paw Humane Society. Conway is accused of five second-degree misdemeanor charges of prohibitions concerning companion animals.
Belmont County Prosecutor Kevin Flanagan commented after her appearance.
"What ultimately we said was if Ms. Conway during these court proceedings would have somebody that would be a potential buyer, she could notify us and we will work with the humane society to vet that person and do a background check on that person to see if that person is a suitable buyer. If that in fact occurs, we would make the request to Judge Costine in order to find the dog a good home," he said. "We would only make this request after the humane society has indicated to our office that the person would be a suitable provider and provide a suitable home for the dog."
Flanagan said the dogs taken from the Piedmont residence are not themselves considered "evidence."
"The condition of the dogs that were taken would be the evidence that we would ultimately utilize. We have had all of the dogs go to the vet, and we have received reports on any of the injuries suffered by any of the dogs," Flanagan said.
"There's 31 dogs that were seized. We now have to find homes for 31 dogs. If Ms. Conway gives us a potential suitable home, the humane society will investigate to see if in fact that person would provide a suitable home. That's it. That's all we're doing. We are not giving the dogs back to Ms. Conway. She is not going to come and pick it up," he said. "There was no about-face or turn in position, we simply need to find good homes for the dogs."
Flanagan said Conway would not profit from the sales of the animals. The distribution of the money will be decided by the court, and Belmont County Hoof & Paw may be compensated for the expenses of caring for the dogs.
Regarding the remainder of the hearing, Flangan said the defense asked for more time in order to allow Conway to review video footage relative to the investigation.
Conway's next hearing was set for March 5.
Earlier this week Paula Metzler, 55, of 100 Fair Ave., Quaker City who was accused in an animal hoarding case that rose to the felony level, entered an Alford plea, not admitting guilt but acknowledging there is sufficient evidence for a jury to find guilt. Flanagan said the Conway case does not rise to the status of a felony using Goddard's Law, passed in Ohio in 2016, that makes it a felony of the fifth degree to cause serious physical harm to a companion animal.
"This is a case of negligence. There was no intent on the defendant's part to cause serious physical harm to the animals," he said. "It was too many animals in a confined space, and when that happens, a dwelling becomes overrun with animals, and you have hygienic issues and everything else involved in these situations."
Julie Larish, humane agent with Belmont County Hoof & Paw, said 31 dogs and five cats were removed from the home, and all but 11 or 12 could be adopted though many have minor health issues.
"It would be nice to get some of them into homes sooner than later. We're going to be working with the courts to come to an agreement of which dogs can actually go into homes now and which ones will have to be held, pending the end of the case," she said, adding that the animals' conditions are improving.
"They are getting more rambunctious by the day, so it would be good to get them into a home," she said. "The expenses are quite high at this point in time. We're running about $4,000 in vet bills right now, and that's going up."
She said the food bill is also high, and volunteers are putting in an average of five hours daily exercising the dogs.
Larish said the dogs were removed from the residence in January following calls from neighbors and the health department. She added that three puppies had died, but the cause of death has not been determined.
Conway was reportedly breeding and selling the dogs.
Larish said the conditions in the Piedmont residence were very poor.
"Most of the dogs were hypothermic from the heat not being at the floor level, it was further up the wall. Very cold concrete they were living on. Feces and urine in almost every area of the house. Dogs running amok and eating foods they shouldn't. We've got at least one with Lyme disease, at least one with very bad liver damage. Several of them have hernias," she said. "Every dog had an issue that came in, but they are all happy, healthy and running around, groomed, bathed and loving life."
Larish said any donations are welcome. Hoof & Paw can be reached at 610-314-5203 or through BCHP Inc. on Facebook.