LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A judge in Nye County ruled the hundreds of dogs seized from a Amargosa Valley breeder will stay in the custody of the county.
Caucasian Shepherd Case Update https://t.co/wkughINP3G pic.twitter.com/QOBmX5oqXq
— Nye County Sheriff (@NyeSheriff) October 27, 2022
The dogs remain at the Nye County Animal Shelter in several kennels brought in after the seizure.
Nye County District Court Judge Robert Lane came to the decision Wednesday after hearing witness testimony describing the living conditions at the property.
Most of the dogs belonged to Vasili Platunov.
Oksana Higgins, who was in court, was the alleged caretaker at the property. Witnesses told the court she said five dogs were hers.
Investigators from the Nye County Sheriff’s Office initially responded to the Amargosa Valley property in August after an animal cruelty case involving a dog missing part of its leg.
Animal Control Officer Angel Hernandez testified he found puppies living in poor conditions, some on blankets in the garage with maggots.
He told the court he came across the puppies dead in a freezer when attempting to unplug the fridge to plug in a fan for ventilation.
Nye County Sheriff’s Office Detective Morgan Dillon described some of the conditions he found the dogs in.
“As we walked through the yard most of the kennels had feces in them, some of the dogs were covered in feces,” says Detective Dillon Morgan. “I don't recall if we found any kennel that did not have any water bucket in it however most of the buckets were nearly empty, green with algae water, appeared rancid it hadn't been put in there recently.”
Dillon said the number of malnourished dogs was overwhelming.
He said Higgins told him in August that she and Platunov did not have money to care for all the dogs, he said at the time of the seizure there was about a day’s worth of food on the property.
Platunov filed for bankruptcy just weeks ago, a stay was lifted so the issue of dog ownership was decided.
Channel 13 reached out to the Nye County Animal Shelter Wednesday evening to find out what will happen with the dogs currently in their care, we have yet to hear back.
A statement from ASPCA can be found below:
The ASPCA is grateful that custody of the hundreds of dogs rescued from alleged cruelty in Pahrump, Nevada is being transferred to the Nye County Sheriff’s Office. Today’s decision ensures these animals won’t have to go back to a life of potential suffering.
Our priority continues to be providing these dogs with much-needed medical and behavioral assessments and care so we can determine the best outcome for each of them. The ASPCA is working to transport many of these dogs to a facility outside of Nevada where we provide specialized care for animal victims of cruelty and neglect from all across the country. This facility allows local shelters to focus on their lifesaving work for other animals in their communities while the ASPCA can provide ongoing sheltering, medical and behavioral support for animals rescued from largescale cruelty or neglect cases to better prepare them for adoption. While there is still a long road ahead for these dogs to heal and thrive, our hope is that many can be placed into new, loving homes in the future.
We will update this story as more information becomes available.
