Animal Cruelty

A prominent thoroughbred breeder who once owned a Kentucky Derby favorite was charged yesterday with cruelty to animals, 2 days after authorities seized 177 malnourished horses at his Hudson Valley, N.Y., farm. Ernie Paragallo was charged with 22 counts of violating New York's Agriculture and Markets law that prohibits torturing or injuring an animal or failing to provide sustenance, state police said. After his arrest, New York State Racing and Wagering Board chairman John Sabini released a statement saying the board had "immediately terminated his privilege to be involved with thoroughbred racing in New York.

A dog that shelter workers called the victim of the worst cruelty they had ever seen is recovering at the Delaware County SPCA. It will be five to seven days before it is known if the pit bull-boxer mix, dubbed Curious George for his curious nature, will survive, said Justina Calgiano, spokesperson for the Media-based shelter. The dog weighs 35 pounds, half what it should, she said. His nails are overgrown, and he has sores on his backside, probably the result of sitting too long in one spot.

The owner and the manager of a Lancaster County egg farm were charged yesterday with 35 counts of animal cruelty in a case reflecting a national battle between animal-rights advocates and agribusiness over the treatment of laying hens. Video shot by an animal-rights activist employed at Esbenshade Farms in Mount Joy for 10 days last fall showed hens impaled on loose wires, hens unable to eat or drink because they were entangled in the wire cages, and hens left to die in aisles without food and water.

Oxford dog breeder Michael Wolf and two others were found guilty yesterday on all counts of animal cruelty for keeping 333 dogs, two cats and two birds in filthy conditions at Wolf's illegal kennel in Chester County. Magisterial District Judge Harry W. Farmer ruled that Wolf, a nationally known breeder and handler of show dogs, must give up formal ownership of the neglected animals so the Chester County SPCA can find them new homes. Farmer also held Wolf, 65, liable for restitution and court costs totaling $358,357 and prohibited Wolf from ever owning animals again.

Wendy Ware had never seen anything like it in the 10 years she has worked with animals. Ware, a Montgomery County SPCA cruelty agent, said she was shocked Tuesday when Limerick police searched a small farm at 105 Major Road, Royersford, and found more than 100 partially burned carcasses and more than 150 starving animals. The animals - ranging from a wild boar and deer to peacocks and a monkey - were locked in cages in a barn with no food or water in sight. Limerick Township Police Chief Barry Lenhart said the partially burned animal carcasses were found in a 10-foot-wide, 6-foot-deep trench near the barn, where several cardboard barrels of puppies also were found.

If animals could talk, a few cows in Burlington County might ask state legislators to hurry up and outlaw bestiality. During a bizarre hearing there yesterday, a Superior Court judge dismissed animal-cruelty charges against a Moorestown police officer accused of sticking his penis into the mouths of five calves in rural Southampton in 2006, claiming a grand jury couldn't infer whether the cows had been "tormented" or "puzzled" by the situation or...

An animal-cruelty case in Springfield Township has been delayed indefinitely because one of the principals, John Dobran, a self-proclaimed animal-rights activist, was sent to a Middlesex County prison after violating parole that was related to a 1983 conviction. Dobran, who is both a plaintiff and a defendant in the Springfield case, is serving a sentence at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center, according to a court clerk. Dobran, who is medical adviser to Save A Horse, a Burlington County animal- welfare group, was convicted in December 1983 of forgery, writing a bad check and theft by deception, according to a Middlesex County court clerk.

A South Philadelphia woman from whom animal-cruelty agents seized 88 Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mix dogs and two cats two weeks ago was charged yesterday with 134 counts of animal cruelty, the Pennsylvania SPCA announced. Court records identified her as Frances Rotonta, 49, of Earp Street near 8th. Two dead dogs also were found in a July 14 raid on the Earp Street house, where several feet of feces covered the floor, according to George Bengal, director of investigations for the PSPCA.

HARRISBURG - The sight was sad enough: When the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area seized 29 Morgan horses found languishing this month in a manure-choked barnyard near Hershey, many of the animals were down to skin and bones. Then came the bill: The estimate for the horses' basic veterinary care was $30,000 - not including food, hoof, and dental care, utilities, rent, or the cost of extra help. "You cannot predict the level of animal cruelty in your budget," said the society's executive director, Amy Kaunas.