Apr 2, 2008 9:17 pm US/Eastern
Animal Planet Crew Present For Tiger Ranch Raid
FRAZER (KDKA) ―
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Undercover video was shot inside the Tiger Ranch in Frazer, shown to a judge and set the stage for the raid.
KDKA
The case of a cat sanctuary owner facing animal cruelty charges is causing a divide in the animal rights community.
Linda Bruno has been charged with 14 counts of animal cruelty, accused of illegally housing hundreds of cats at Tiger Ranch after a raid last month.
But the case has become complicated by the fact that a crew from "Animal Cops," a show on Animal Planet, was present for the raid.
The raid moved Howard Nelson, the head of the Pennsylvania SPCA, to tears.
"I carried animals as they were dying into cages last night," he said on March 14. "Cats that were just screaming to get out of there."
But Last Chance for Animals, a California-based animal rights group, calls the investigation tainted and is in turn investigating the SPCA.
Chris DeRose, of Last Chance, says the SPCA's action was compromised by their contractual arrangement with Animal Planet and their program "Animal Cops" to produce a series of programs.
A judge in New York threw out animal cruelty charges against a man, ruling that the SPCA agent had played for Animal Planet's cameras and hyped up charges against him. DeRose predicts the same thing will happen with Tiger Ranch.
"And that just conclusion is going to be that these animals are returned immediately back to Tiger Ranch and that this witch hunt is stopped immediately," he said.
The SPCA, based in Philadelphia, confirms they received some money from Animal Planet for space in their offices for the show's crew while they were in town. But they also say they have not been influenced by the program and stand by their evidence, given to them by Deborah Urmann who volunteered at the ranch, conducted an undercover investigation and recorded video of sickly cats.
"I did everything legally and I did what I did to save those animals that were suffering," she said.
Urmann says she took the evidence to the SPCA in Philadelphia and kept local officers in the dark because she said they were too cozy with Bruno.
Local Humane Officer Kathy Hecker recently conducted her own investigation of Tiger Ranch and found no violations and denies turning a blind eye.
"We don't duck down from a fight if there's animal welfare issues, " she said.
From there the war of words only escalates. Last Chance for Animal says Urmann originally came to them with her allegations and they conducted their own investigation and found Tiger Ranch to be above board.
Likewise, Bruno says Urmann asked her for a job but she turned her down and that Urmann is carrying a grudge.
All of this will be argued in court on Thursday.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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