A Stoke-on-Trent rescue continued to import dogs from Bosnia to rehome with UK households regardless of apparently having severe issues about animals being diseased and transported in poor circumstances.
Adopt A Rescue Dog (AARD) – which trades as a neighborhood curiosity firm – took donations from households across the nation in return for organising bringing dogs from Eastern Europe.
But an investigation by StokeonTrentReside has realized that a number of the animals arrived in very poor well being or turned out to have behavioural issues that meant vets right here suggested they need to be put down. In one case, a canine that was in excessive in poor health well being and needed to be put down, was discovered to not have obtained the vaccinations the household was advised it had been given.
And inside weeks of a number of the final dogs introduced over from Bosnia arriving within the UK, the corporate’s founder, Kendra Pinder, declared she had been “contemplating pulling out of Bosnia for many months”.
One household whose canine died not lengthy after arriving within the UK mentioned they consider their pet would have “been better off staying on the streets in Bosnia”.
StokeonTrentReside has additionally realized that the corporate’s founder has unpaid money owed to a UK-based kennels during which quite a few its dogs had been left for months, operating up 1000’s of kilos in kennelling charges.
A Trading Standards probe is underway into AARD, and the federal government advises folks solely undertake dogs from UK-based rescues.
‘It was a satan canine .. there was a lot stress and fear’
In January final yr, 45-year-old Dan Kay, from Liverpool, took in Boky, a big Collie-type crossbreed canine that was introduced over from Bosnia. The animal’s behavioural issues and ill-health grew to become obvious to Mr Kay within the spring, and he reported to family and friends that at one level the canine had grow to be so aggressive it had him pinned within the nook of a room, snarling at him.
Messages seen by StokeonTrentReside present Mr Kay advised AARD that regardless of Boky “being described before he arrived as a dog who really enjoyed the company of other dogs”, he had grow to be reactive, which Mr Kay steered could have been all the way down to “the trauma of the last few months”.
The canine was mentioned to have attacked different dogs whereas out on walks, and afraid that the animal would possibly attack folks, Mr Kay – a author and well-known campaigner for justice for victims of the Hillsborough catastrophe, who handed away in May this yr – took the painful resolution to have Boky put to sleep on the recommendation of his vet.
His greatest pal, Steven Kelly, 70, advised StokeonTrentReside: “I knew Dan needed to get a canine, and I’d mentioned to him possibly he ought to go to Carla Lane Animals In Need or The Dogs Trust and get a really feel for one thing that will be the suitable match for him, as he was solely a small man himself.
“He then advised me he’d been in contact with this firm they usually’d acquired this canine in Bosnia. I mentioned to him, ‘I’m not being humorous however they’re all avenue dogs over there’. He mentioned, ‘No, the woman has told me they’re all vaccinated and properly taken care of’.
The canine was dropped off at Pendellas canine kennels in Aughton, West Lancashire, as soon as it arrived within the UK, and Mr Kay collected it. But Mr Kelly mentioned the canine began to exhibit issues.
He added: “Dan introduced him all the way down to the park and the canine went for my canine, Seamus, and attacked him 4 occasions ultimately.
“Dan phoned me and said he was in the bedroom, and was asking me if I could help him. He said he’d had a visitor and the dog had gone for him twice, and it was going for Dan, too. He said he’d been making himself some food and the dog had started growling at him so he’d had to put the food down and go and lock himself in the bedroom.”
Mr Kelly added that, fearful the canine would attack somebody, Mr Kay took the canine to the vets in Liverpool’s Mossley Hill district, and on April 20, on the recommendation of vets, Boky was euthanised.
The vets’ medical information, seen by StokeonTrentReside, notice: “Ongoing points with utterly unpredictable character.
“One minute very chilled, the following minute snapping and aggressive.
“Owner is discovering the state of affairs extremely troublesome, is making efforts to rehome however no success as he’s aggressive.
“Trazodone has helped a little but isn’t a long term fix. We don’t have any option other than to consider euthanasia at this point. Long conversation with the owner. Very difficult for him but agrees this is simply the only option for both his and Boky’s sake.”
Mr Kelly added: “To be honest, it was an absolute devil dog. I’ve had dogs all my life. My westie was 18, and I’ve had Seamus for years. I know dogs, but you took a look at this dog and you knew something was not right with it.”
Ms Pinder advised StokeonTrentReside the canine “had no ongoing health issues” and that “the vet in Bosnia checked him as he does for dogs travelling, etc. including blood tests”.
She additionally mentioned she had been in contact with Mr Kay throughout his time with Boky. Messages seen by StokeonTrentReside present an alternate during which she steered rehoming the canine with an older, skilled couple, adopted by Mr Kay giving her the information that his vet had suggested euthanising the canine and had put him to sleep.
In response, Ms Pinder wrote to him: “Are you kidding me? What is your vet’s contact details? This is utter crap. How dare you do this? You have destroyed an innocent dog’s life. A vet’s easy way out is always PTS (put to sleep). You had no right.”
Mr Kelly mentioned Mr Kay had been devastated to should put the canine down, including: “He had a lot of stress and worry over this dog. There were no proper home checks, just a video call. It should never have been brought over here and given to someone who didn’t know how to handle it.”
‘It was worse than the life he was leaving behind there’
Luke Hawker, 30, and his spouse Amy, 27, from Newbiggin-by-the-sea in Northumbria, obtained their canine Roko in March this yr. Like Mr Kay’s canine Boky, he got here from Bosnia, was held at Pendellas kennels in West Lancashire, and was then delivered to the household.
Mr Hawker mentioned when Roko arrived, they instantly discovered him to be unwell, passing blood in his stool and vomiting.
Within a matter of weeks, Roko was lifeless, and the outcomes of a put up mortem examination – seen by StokeonTrentReside – reveal him to have been affected by canine distemper, a illness Mr Hawker says he was advised the canine had obtained vaccinations for.
Messages seen by StokeonTrentReside present the household had initially been assured the canine had been totally vaccinated.
But WhatsApp messages from the person in Bosnia answerable for administering the vaccine revealed he had had solely one of many three doses of vaccine he was purported to obtain earlier than being moved to the shelter from which he was transported to the UK.
Mr Hawker mentioned the vets who had been treating Roko in Morpeth had been doing so underneath the impression that he was already vaccinated in opposition to the illness.
Ms Pinder defined through the course of the messages that the rescue centre from which Roko was to depart was “the only place where all dogs from different rescues mix.”
Mr Hawker mentioned that following the put up mortem, Ms Pinder agreed to pay the prices of the veterinary remedy Roko had obtained.
But a number of months later, no funds had been obtained and he was efficiently awarded a County Court Judgement for £1,700 in opposition to the corporate. He says he’s nonetheless awaiting cost.
Mr Hawker mentioned the underside line was he and his household had been made guarantees that the canine was vaccinated, when it was not.
He mentioned: “We by no means noticed any proof that the canine had been checked as secure to journey till after he’d died, and even then we don’t know what that’s. It was a screenshot of a letter from a vets in Bosnia, however we couldn’t learn it or perceive it they usually by no means translated it for us, regardless of the girl who despatched it being from Bosnia herself.
“This was a canine that was recognized by somebody to be not correctly vaccinated, and it was allowed to enter a home with a small youngster in it. After Roko died, our little boy, who was solely two, was heartbroken, asking the place the canine had gone.
“Ultimately, Roko would have been higher off staying in Bosnia on the streets than being introduced right here.
“The transport that he was put by way of,and the way in which he was dealt with, was worse than the life he was forsaking there.
“It’s animal abuse, simple as that.”
In response to Mr Hawker’s claims, Ms Pinder mentioned: “Firstly it needs to be mentioned this was an terrible state of affairs that ought to by no means have occurred, and (we) can solely think about the tears shed by Mr Hawker and his household.
“We have rehomed thousands of dogs throughout the years with success, but in this instance an adopter was indeed let down. But more importantly, a rescued dog (was) failed ultimately by us, something we will not forgive ourselves for … and (we) can only learn lessons to ensure this never happens again.”
‘I don’t give a f*** about you … I solely care in regards to the dogs’
Lydia Smith, 31, from London, obtained her canine Cowboy from AARD in April, in the identical transport as Luke Hawker’s canine Roko. She mentioned he had severe abdomen issues when he arrived.
She mentioned: “I was hearing that one of the dogs on the transport immediately before mine had tested positive for distemper. I found it unbelievable that she was still bringing over dogs. (When I asked her about it) I got a voice note from her saying ‘I don’t give a f*** about you, I only care about the dogs’.”
Miss Smith mentioned she would obtain voice notes from Ms Pinder into the night, which Ms Pinder would later delete.
Miss Smith added: “Within the primary month I had spent round £1000 on vets payments as a result of he was so poorly.
“I had all that stress of not realizing what was occurring, for the canine, when it did arrive, to be so unwell.
“He still has ongoing stomach problems which the vets attributed to him being really poorly on his way over on the transport.”
Ms Pinder advised StokeonTrentReside she had provided to pay for Cowboy’s veterinary care however questioned the quantity Ms Smith mentioned she had needed to spend. Of the voice notice, she mentioned “at no time would such a voice note exist,” after which went on to take a position that “We do wonder if Miss Smith heard this within a group message and it was directed at another (Kendra) may have been arguing with?”
‘I took these dogs in good faith …. now she owes me five or six grand’
StokeonTrentReside understands that not less than two of AARD’s transports from Bosnia ended their journey at Pendellas kennels in Aughton, West Lancashire.
From there – after a adequate 48-hour quarantine interval required by regulation – they had been distributed to the households who had been taking them in.
Barbara Dawson, who runs the kennels, mentioned the dogs would arrive in a van, with every animal “in a small cage”.
She mentioned in her expertise the dogs would have needed to have undergone border checks, the place paperwork for the variety of dogs in consignment would have needed to be proven.
Mrs Dawson mentioned she didn’t discover any dogs showing to be unwell after they arrived, however that when she discovered that one of many dogs in a consignment had distemper, she needed to deep clear her kennels.
She mentioned: “It’s a good job that I clean them every day and I blast them with a high-pressure machine. When I found out about the distemper I had to do a double dose.”
Mrs Dawson added that she had been left with 5 dogs that belonged to AARD – animals she speculated could have been adopted after which despatched again by the adopters.
She added: “I believe the dogs I’ve acquired right here have been handed again, as they’ve acquired their pet passports. I took these dogs in good religion and I really feel like I’ve been s*** on. I can’t afford to have dogs in my kennels and maintain them for nothing. I’m knowledgeable boarding kennel, I’m not a rescue or a charity.
“Now, her bill runs into thousands, and I don’t think I’m going to get paid.”
Ms Pinder advised StokeonTrentReside: “We didn’t abandon the dogs at Pendellas kennels. She provided to re-home the dogs and adoption prices to return off the debt.s
“Considering the rescue’s dire situation, and that we knew and trusted Barbara to re-home to suitable families, this seemed the perfect situation for the dogs and our debt to Pendellas.”
Mrs Dawson emphatically rejected Ms Pinder’s claims. She mentioned she needed to give all 5 dogs to a charity, and by no means stood to make any money from doing so.
“It’s left us about five or six grand down. Every time I rang her she couldn’t speak because she said she was ill, or she was in a meeting, or she was in hospital. It was excuse after excuse. In the end I said I’m going to rehome them and send you a bill.”
Mrs Dawson mentioned the debt stays unpaid.
Charity Commission lifetime ban for director
In 2018, AARD’s sole director Kendra Pinder was completely disqualified from appearing as a trustee of a charity. A Charity Commission investigation into Action Aid For Animals (AAFA) – of which she had been a trustee – discovered that round £63,000 of the charity’s funds had been transferred to a different organisation referred to as Ticket To Freedom.
According to the probe, Ms Pinder “did not handle the assets and property of the charity and her actions resulted in funds which had been as a result of charity being diverted to Ticket To Freedom.
“The misconduct and/or mismanagement by (Ms Pinder) has resulted in a loss of approximately £63,000.”
The inquiry discovered that “Ticket to Freedom is not a charity” and “whilst it is likely that the charity’s money which was transferred to Ticket to Freedom has been spent on rescuing dogs from abroad, the inquiry was unable to verify that those funds had been spent in furtherance of the charity’s objects.”
The Charity Commission added: “As a result Trustee A was removed as a trustee of Action Aid for Animals on 27 March 2018 and is permanently disqualified from acting as a trustee of this and any other charity.”
Ms Pinder has advised StokeonTrentReside that she by no means personally benefited from the switch of the money and repeatedly put her personal money into the charity to assist it pay its money owed. She mentioned she believed she had been “scapegoated” and was within the strategy of making an attempt to enchantment in opposition to the Charity Commission trustee ban.
AARD was shaped in 2019 as a neighborhood curiosity firm – which suggests it’s a restricted firm that should display it has some neighborhood profit. It just isn’t a charity, though on its web site and social media accounts it seeks what it phrases “donations”.
Ms Pinder is the only director, and its accounts have been overdue since March this yr. It is now dealing with being compulsorily struck off the businesses register.
In late May this yr, Ms Pinder penned a protracted put up on Facebook during which she mentioned: “It is with the deepest remorse and unhappiness that our rescue shall be pulling out of Bosnia.
“This has not been an easy decision. For many months this has been contemplated, hoping things might change but they haven’t.”
She went on so as to add: “No longer can we justify collaborating with individuals who dictate their phrases to us, now not can we settle for not having the ability to totally management others’ actions.
“Bosnia has a small quantity of transports, and right now they management all the pieces.
“If you need one other transport for use (different) than what the fosterers need, they then blackmail you with not letting the dogs go away.
“Some transports do not abide by the legal framework, (with) dogs arriving and dying from catching disease from their vans, yet (they are) not taking responsibility, not changing their system.”
StokeonTrentReside has approached Ms Pinder for touch upon why the corporate continued to import animals from Bosnia regardless of having such issues. In response, she mentioned: “Indeed as a rescue we definitely had reservations from the expertise of serving to dogs from overseas who definitely wanted saving from essentially the most inhumane and barbaric circumstances.
“But the people over there concerned had been far lower than sincere or dependable.
“We actually don’t assume many perceive what torture and absolute depravity these poor animals endure and regardless of our rescue’s demise due to these people we nonetheless had dedicated to quite a few dogs moderately than flip our backs on them.
“So our conclusion was to stick by the rescuers and fosters who had not let us down in the past and to change the clinic and transport to a Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)-approved trusted company.”
She added that till 2022 – which she described in a weblog put up on AARD’s web site as a “disaster for all” – the corporate had “five star reviews all the way”. She mentioned: “When mentally and bodily I selected to belief others, all hell broke free. In hindsight I do consider that AARD saved me, permitting me to proceed my ardour but additionally, in a manner, therapeutic me slightly from what occurred at AAFA.
“However, possibly as I did certainly burn out and agreed to others stepping in and operating issues, possibly it was too quickly.
“But (with) the horror I was seeing and knew I could help, how soon is too soon?”
Ms Pinder added she anticipated AARD would grow to be a dormant firm as soon as its money owed had been cleared.
‘We urge rehoming in the UK rather than importing from abroad’
The Department for Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) enforces strict guidelines in regards to the importation of stay animals. It says that dogs must be accompanied by acceptable well being certificates, and be vaccinated in opposition to rabies.
It provides that whereas there isn’t any requirement to vaccinate in opposition to different ailments, well being certificates ought to present the animals confirmed no indicators of illness earlier than being transported.
And these checks should be carried out by a vet inside 48 hours of the transport taking place.
A spokesman for DEFRA mentioned: “We all the time urge potential homeowners to contemplate rehoming from a good organisation within the United Kingdom moderately than importing pets from overseas.
“Those selecting to import pets from overseas ought to accomplish that responsibly by making certain they buy from a good vendor or breeder and that it’s transported by an authorised transporter with the mandatory authorisations each for GB and the European Union.
“Bringing a canine from abroad has elevated animal well being and welfare dangers.
“If considering importing a dog into the UK (or rescuing a dog that has been imported) we recommend prospective owners ensure testing for other diseases including Brucella canis is carried out before arrival.”
A spokesman for Stoke-on-Trent City Council confirmed a Trading Standards investigation into AARD was underway, with the help of Staffordshire Police.
