Loophole Lets Suppliers Sell Pets to Labs : Proposed Rules May Curb Taking Animals by Deceit

Michelle Zelman was moving to a small Tarzana condominium--hardly the place for her large, 6-year-old dog, Sasha--and thought she was doing the right thing when she ran a newspaper advertisement offering the dog to a good home.

The man who answered her ad was personable, friendly and Sasha took to him instantly. “When we went to the back yard, he dropped down to his knees and she went right up to him,” Zelman recalled.

It seemed a good match. Zelman only become suspicious later, when the telephone number the man gave her was always busy. The man and Sasha, a German shepherd-golden retriever mix, had disappeared.

But four months later, on Feb. 3, Sasha was among six dogs turned over to city animal-regulation authorities by researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center when a now-familiar story was first revealed: A man responding to “free pet to good home” advertisements was selling dogs and cats to two Sun Valley kennels, which in turn sold some of the animals to unsuspecting medical laboratories.

Animal-welfare groups and authorities say the story of Sasha’s ordeal is not unique. Although documented cases are rare, authorities said they are certain that classified ads provide a ready source of income for some dealers of research animals.

“It’s not something that’s common, but it’s not infrequent either,” said Dr. R.L. Crawford, senior staff veterinarian with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“It’s really a pathetic situation,” said John Rock, a Los Angeles deputy city attorney investigating the Sun Valley kennels, Budget Boarding and Comfy Kennel.

Laws Called Inadequate

Crawford, Rock and animal-welfare experts also agree that federal and state laws are inadequate to combat the problem.

Under federal law, for example, it is not a crime to sell fraudulently obtained animals for research. Crawford said USDA regulations spell out record-keeping requirements for the dealers of research animals, but they place no restrictions on where or how the dealers get the animals they sell to labs.

“At the present time, even if they have a stolen dog, as long as they have proper records, there’s nothing we can do,” Crawford said.

California law has similar loopholes. Although an 1872 state law makes dog stealing a felony--”grand theft dog”--it does not specifically address obtaining animals for research through deceit, Rock said. The Budget Boarding case illustrates what he said are deficiencies in the law.

The case came to light in January when several pet owners and an animal-rights group called Last Chance for Animals told authorities that a man was duping people into giving up their pets, only to sell them to Barbara Ruggiero, owner of Budget Boarding and Comfy Kennel. Investigators from the Los Angeles Department of Animal Regulation later confirmed the accusations, said Lt. Robert Pena of the department.

The investigators also found, Pena said, that Ruggiero had sold 78 animals--49 dogs and 29 cats--to three Southern California research facilities since she received her supplier’s license from the USDA last October. Of those animals, at least two cats and two dogs, Zelman’s pet among them, were obtained fraudulently, Pena said.

Ruggiero has denied knowing how the man, identified by authorities as Ralf Jacobsen, obtained the animals she sold to researchers.

Ruggiero and Jacobsen are under investigation, and authorities are trying to decide what, if any, charges can be brought against the pair, Rock said.

Because federal and state laws do not address the problem directly, investigators are reviewing fraud statutes. Rock said the law prohibiting dog stealing offers little help because the Sun Valley kennels could argue the animals were not stolen--the owners gave them away freely.

Moreover, investigators are entering new territory. At least in California, Rock said, “there have been no prosecutions for adoption of animals through misrepresentation.”

New Restrictions Proposed

Prosecuting future such cases may become easier, however. In response to reports of dealers obtaining animals through deception, the USDA has proposed regulations that would discourage them from going to the classifieds for animals, Crawford said.

The regulations would upgrade record-keeping requirements and allow the suppliers, known as B-dealers, to buy animals only from government pounds and from people licensed to raise animals for research, Crawford said.

He said B-dealers currently may sell but not raise animals for research. USDA records list 53 such dealers in California, 14 in the Los Angeles area.

The USDA regulations, proposed last March, may take effect sometime this spring, Crawford said.

States are addressing the problem as well. In Massachusetts, a 1986 law essentially ended the B-dealer system, said Martha Armstrong, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

In Minnesota, pending legislation would force B-dealers to post signs saying they sell animals for experimentation, said Rick Riley, director of the Minnesota Humane Society. At present, the only way to identify a B-dealer is through a USDA list.

But animal-rights groups say the best way to prevent pets from ending up in labs is simple--don’t give them away through the newspaper.

“People really need to be aware of not giving their animals away for free to anybody. That’s very, very risky,” said Jerye Mooney, Los Angeles coordinator for the National Fund for Animals.

If pet owners must give their animals away, they should interview the prospective owner carefully and write down their driver’s license number, Mooney said. In the Budget Boarding case, many of the pet owners did ask for telephone numbers and addresses, but later discovered the numbers or addresses were phony, authorities said. They also learned the man gave them phony names as well.

Pet owners should insist on seeing the home of the person adopting their pet, Mooney said. “When you introduce your animal to the person, pay attention to how the animal acts. Sometimes his instinct is better than yours,” she said.

But sometimes it isn’t. Sasha, who has since been placed in a new home, initially adored the man who sold her for experimentation.

Ask About Policy

Mooney also recommended giving animals to private shelters, which generally do not sell to research. She also said pet owners should ask public pounds about their policies toward experimentation. Pounds operated by the Los Angeles city Department of Animal Regulation, for example, do not sell to research. Most pounds run by the county Department of Animal Care and Control do sell to labs.

Barbara Fabricant, a state humane officer in Winnetka, offered more blunt advice: “Unless you’re absolutely sure who that animal is going to, put it to sleep. It’s the kindest thing.”