PSPCA seizes 14 dogs from alleged illegal ear cropping and tail docking operation in Philadelphia

The Pennsylvania SPCA said it has uncovered an illegal ear cropping and tail docking operation in the city’s Tacony and Feltonville sections and seized 14 dogs, including some that were near death when they were found.

The investigation began on Feb. 8 when the BluePearl Emergency Hospital’s Philadelphia facility reported it had received two Cane Corso-type puppies in critical condition, the PSPCA said this week.

The puppies had recently cropped ears and their tails had “strangulating ligatures from attempted docking.” The areas around the ears and tails were infected, causing the puppies to go into septic shock. One puppy went into cardiac arrest, but was resuscitated.

Investigators from the PSPCA visited the owner at his home in Tacony and found seven puppies that had allegedly been subjected to the illegal ear and tail procedures. The man told investigators he had paid someone to perform the procedures. The puppies were seized and taken to the PSPCA Philadelphia hospital for medical treatment.

The PSPCA investigators then went to a second location in Feltonville and seized five more dogs. One of the dogs had recently given birth and needed immediate surgery for a complication that had been untreated.

The investigators learned that a puppy died after a procedure, and that no postoperative medication or treatment was provided to any of the remaining puppies.

Criminal charges are pending in the ongoing investigation, the PSPCA said.

Under Pennsylvania’s animal-cruelty code, it is illegal for anyone other than a licensed veterinarian to perform ear cropping or tail docking, the PSPCA said. The procedure, which is for cosmetic purposes, can have harmful and even deadly results when not done correctly.

“These poor puppies have experienced so much pain and suffering in their short lives, and we only hope that through investigation and prosecution, we can prevent this from happening to other vulnerable dogs,” Nicole Wilson, the PSPCA’s director of animal law enforcement and shelter operations, said in a statement.

“We hope that through our actions, the public will learn about the cruel nature of ear cropping and tail docking, and just how unnecessary it is,” Julie Klim, CEO of the PSPCA, said in a statement.

Anyone with information about this case, or other cases involving animal cruelty, can contact the Pennsylvania SPCA’s cruelty hotline at (866) 601-SPCA. Tips can be left anonymously.