Written by Gina Brashear owner of the Affordable Animal Care Clinic and Updated by Lehigh Acres Gazette staff
Wednesday we had a horrible incident involving the corrupt facility of Lee County Animal Control, returning a critically injured 5 month old female pit bull puppy that has a shattered femur bone from the backyard breeder letting his 97 pound male dog whom he “forced” to breed the five month old puppy which shattered her femur head in her hip!
Gerardo Villarreal of Lehigh Acres owns Layla. Villarreal admitted to us that “Chapo” injured the puppy. Per an unnamed source the adult male pit bull that has been cited previously in Lee County Animal Control’s system. But by email Tim Engstrom Lee County Communion Specialist stated, “LCDAS records show no previous reports for Mr. Villarreal.”
Brashear’s rescue has had Layla at a Veterinarian clinic being treated since last Friday September 9th because the owner did not have money to pay for the vet bills.
Villarreal arrived today with an animal control officer, the rudest man we have ever encountered at our Clinic.
Affordable Animal Care Clinic called the sheriff’s department four officers arrived, they were 100% on our side and did not want the owner having the dog turned back over to him because of the abuse and neglect the dog has endured the past 16 days since the injury first occurred. This abusive owner has had 16 days to come up with the $5,000 quote from SVS Emergency Center to do the surgery to repair the hip.
The owner refuses to have the dog spayed, because he wants to breed her which is why she has the broken femur head now because of his abuse and neglect! She can never be bred after having the femur head surgery repair.
The surgery that he cannot even afford to have at SVS Clinic. He owes over $500 for the care he could not even pay for at the veterinarian clinic that did the x-rays, antibiotics, fluids, pain meds, etc.
Affordable Animal Care Clinic immediately called Brandon Scribner the operations manager at Lee County Animal Services and he promised us the dog would be brought in the morning to him at 8 a.m. and if they did not immediately take it to SVS for surgery they would confiscate the dog. Brandon LIED!!!!
The ruthless Animal Control officer handed the dog over to the abusive owners this afternoon at our veterinarian clinic he was laughing about the entire incident while the dog was in excruciating pain with an IV ripped out of its leg!
Tim Engstrom Lee County Communion Specialist also stated, “Lee County Domestic Animal Services (LCDAS) is investigating an incident involving a dog taken to a local care clinic with a broken femur.
The owner of the dog, Gerardo Villarreal, took it to the Affordable Animal Care Clinic when he and his wife noticed it was injured. It is not known how the injury occurred.
Mr. Villarreal said he was unable to pay the costs quoted by Affordable Animal Care Clinic to perform surgery to repair the dog’s broken femur. Mr. Villarreal said Gina Brashear, the owner of Affordable Animal Care Clinic, would not give him his dog back until his wife contacted the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. Ms. Brashear called LCDAS and an animal control officer issued a citation to Mr. Villarreal to provide veterinary care for the dog within 72 hours. Animal Services cannot mandate which clinic he chooses to provide the care.
Mr. Villarreal brought the dog to the LCDAS clinic where it was examined by the veterinarian. Mr. Villarreal has agreed to allow LCDAS to perform the surgery as well as sterilize the dog. This arrangement was offered to him through the Animal Care Trust Fund as he qualifies for financial assistance. The Animal Care Trust Fund, established in 2002, provides funds for direct assistance and programs to improve animal care and welfare.
Gina Brashear stated we need the publics support so please call animal control, and the County Commissioners. Voice your opinion on what they have done to this innocent 5 month old puppy with a shattered femur bone! The statutes in the state of Florida are very clear on what should have happened with this abusive owner!
An immediate confiscation of the dog since the injury has been 16 days long. Scribner the operations manager promised Brashear the abusive owner who is already in animal controls system from being cited previously would be given 3 citations and the dog immediately at Animal Control at 8 a.m.
That is not at all the directions the officer gave the abusive owner!!! They chuckled laughed and he told him to take it to any Vet he wanted to, to seek treatment. They’re not even following up on the case.
This dog has to be taken to an orthopedic specialist. We had three quotes from three different specialist the officer wasn’t even interested in seeing the dogs report or how bad the x-rays were!!!
The poor baby cannot even walk he had to carry it out of the clinic!!! Please call and voice your opinion to all of the media and others mentioned above. Please be Layla’s voice and see that she gets Justice!!! We will be posting tomorrow what time the protests will be. Please anyone that can attend come be Layla’s voice!!!
According to Brashear, Lee County Animal Control violated the Florida Statutes of enforcing “immediate” care in which Layla should have been taken immediately to SVS (Specialized Veterinary Service) or taken by the Officer to their facility and allowing our Clinic to “pull” her from their facility to do the surgery for free and take her into our rescue or several other rescues we have willing to take her in.
When the Lehigh Acres Gazette asked where Layla was and who is performing the surgery this is the statement we get from Betsy Clayton, Lee County Communications Director, “The dog is with LCDAS and our veterinarian will do surgery today. We have two veterinarians on staff with extensive experience; the one performing surgery today also is highly credentialed.”
According to Brashear and her Vet, Lee County Animal Services doesn’t have the extensive experience to do this type of surgery.
The Lehigh Acres Gazette has asked for the name of the Vet at Lee County Animal Services who is doing the surgery and they, Lee County has refused to tell us and refused to tell Brashear and her Vet so they can legally close their case notes.
Yeah… that’s what Lehigh Acres needs… more backyard breeding of pit bulls?!?! Are you kidding me? Lehigh is eaten up with that most vicious of breed. (Statistically… pit bulls disfiguringly maul or kill more people… THAN ALL OTHER BREEDS combined!) Just wait Lehigh Acres… it’s just a matter of time before we read about one of these disfiguring maulings or death… right here in our hometown of Lehigh Acres.
How horrible to allow someone who would try to breed a 5 month old puppy a baby to have that animal back. To allow that poor baby to suffer in pain for 16 days just unbelievable and to hear the the officer was laughing.
According to Betsy Clayton Lee County Communications Director by email said, “The puppy is doing fine post-op, the surgery went well and she’s expected to have a full recovery.”
But Clayton and others in the county continue to ignore the media’s questions, why? Why are they hiding something?
Heartbroken and disgusted by this abuse. There is clearly something mentally wrong with this excuse for a human.AND how could any service dealing with animals allow such secondary abuse to this poor baby.
I believe animal control and Lcas should be fined at the least and Mr. V face criminal charges.