Bloomingdale sets hearing over animal shelter's license
Under scrutiny by the state, and with protests mounting from former clients, workers and volunteers, the embattled Pet Rescue could be shut down by the village of Bloomingdale.
Village leaders will hold a public hearing next month to consider revoking Pet Rescue's special-use permit for the first time since the animal shelter opened its doors there three decades ago.
The move, in part, is in response to growing complaints of alleged inhumane care at the privately run, no-kill shelter. Two of its top officials also face criminal cruelty charges, and their state operating license is in jeopardy.
"This has been a problem for a number of years," Bloomingdale Village President Robert Iden said. "We can pull the special-use permit, but that can't be done overnight. We're not just going to put a padlock on the front door so that no one can get in or go out.
But, he added, "We want the right resolution sooner rather than later."
Finding the right resolution, though, lies at the heart of a heated debate.
State officials confirmed Wednesday the shelter at 151 N. Bloomingdale Road is housing 164 cats and 44 dogs, double an earlier estimate. An Illinois Department of Agriculture inspector is checking in on the animals once a week, as recently as Monday, to ensure they have adequate food, water, shelter and proper care.
The state department suspended Pet Rescue's operating license Oct. 16 after a fourth alleged violation, but it was reinstated last week pending an administrative hearing later this year.
"The most current report is that the animals are being cared for and that (Pet Rescue) is meeting the statutory requirements," said Jeff Squibb, a department spokesman. "It's my understanding this facility has been a chronic problem, but to say there has not been any inspections or attempt to discipline them, is not an accurate statement."
Critics, many of whom said they witnessed atrocities firsthand, argue local, county, and state officials have allowed the situation to fester too long.
They said Pet Rescue officials are "hoarders," who'd rather see an animal live its life in a cage devoid of human contact rather than be put up for adoption. They describe conditions so filthy, the animals have red eyes due to the overpowering ammonia smell of urine and languish in feces-laden cages.
One volunteer, Lori Chaussey of Addison, started a letter-writing campaign last summer.
"I continue to stay because of the animals," she said in one letter to DuPage County prosecutors. "Believe me, it is easier to walk away and not be continually reminded of the neglect."
Afterward, Chaussey said, Pet Rescue officials let her go.
Pet Rescue president Dale Armon, 74, of Berkeley, and her director, Penny Horak, 69, of Winfield, are facing 16 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. In a separate case, a Carol Stream woman whose puppy adoption was denied is charged with theft after she tried to run off with a white Pappillon because the woman said she feared for its safety.
Police also are investigating whether a Pet Rescue worker should face criminal charges for denying proper veterinarian care to a male pitbull-mix dog who suffered multiple bites and a large cut during a Saturday dog fight at the shelter. Hours later, on Sunday, another worker rushed him to the Bloomingdale Animal Hospital for surgery.
A former worker, Victoria Cortez, of Streamwood, said the poor conditions have existed as far back as the 1990s when she worked for Pet Rescue as a veterinary technician for three months before she quit in disgust.
"Their idea of a 'no kill' shelter is abominable," Cortez said. "I remember a male gray tabby kitten with distemper who had a 106-degree temperature and was vomiting and had diarrhea. You couldn't pick it up because it was in so much pain. I was told, 'We don't kill here. Let God takes its course.' I watched that cat suffer for three days until it died."
If state agriculture officials suspend Pet Rescue's operating license, the shelter may reapply one year later. If Bloomingdale leaders revoke the special-use permit, which involves zoning issues, the shelter can no longer operate at the site. Neither public hearing date has been set yet, but both are expected next month.
Many authorities expressed frustration at the situation, which they blame a poorly written state animal welfare law for allowing to exist. They are strategizing possible options to best protect the animals, which are viewed under the law as Pet Rescue's private property unless ownership is relinquished or otherwise forfeited.
Meanwhile, Armon and Horak are back in court Nov. 24, when prosecutors will ask a judge to grant unannounced inspections with a licensed veterinarian. Both pleaded not guilty. They repeatedly denied interview requests and could not be reached Wednesday, but their lawyer, Rick Schoenfield, said they expect to be vindicated.