For all of us in the Doberman community, the wait for the trial in Chester County to decide the fate of the 116 Dobermans confiscated from a puppy mill has been incredibly painful. Doberman Rescues from up and own the east coast took in many of these dogs, cared for their wounds both physical and emotional and hoped and prayed that these dogs would never go back to Hung Iron Kennels, and that Jordon Johnson would get what he deserved. We finally have closure.

The court ruled that Jordon Johnson will not be getting his dogs back. Unfortunately, he only received 90 days probation, which is far less than all of us who have spent this time caring for hi dogs feel he deserves, but we do take solace in the fact that not a single one of these Dobermans will have to live that life again.

Now that we are allowed to speak out about the dogs we took in, we want to share with you our 4. Luckily, the physical conditions of the three females and one male we took in were not severe, though ALL required medical attention for fresh scars, worms, and skin and eye infections. All four have incredibly bad teeth with teeth worn down from chewing on metal, and others had teeth missing or with serious cavities. Luckily none of them had heart worms as Johnson was giving them ivermectin.

Troy

Troy, one of the GDR Rescues from the South Carolina Puppy Mill bust

Troy, one of the GDR Rescues from the South Carolina Puppy Mill bust

One of the GDR rescues from the puppy mill bust, Stormy.[/caption]Troy, one of the GDR Rescues from the South Carolina Puppy Mill bust[/caption]When Troy arrived, he had to be carried everywhere. He was so incredibly terrified, that he would not move. 90lbs of shaking Doberman. Initially, we were only to take 3 of the dogs, but Troy would be the only one left at the shelter, so we took him too. Troy, along with Stormie was transported to a vet nearby our President’s home. She was able to meet them up there and take pictures of their arrival for the courts. Troy had to be carried. He stayed at the vet for about a week to make sure he was healthy, and then he moved to a nearby boarding facility. He was still so scared he relieved himself in the car on the way over. The facility is not a typical kennel and he lived in his own room with furniture and received plenty of attention from the staff there, all who fell in love with him. In the weeks he spent in boarding, he started to open up, little by little and learn to trust people. He is still quite fearful of men, but adores women and does well with older children. He is a lovable goofball that has taken to collecting shoes. He has had a dramatic transformation during his time with us, and we are thrilled that we can now work on finding him his forever home.

Stormie

One of the GDR rescues from the puppy mill bust, Stormy.

One of the GDR rescues from the puppy mill bust, Stormy.

Stormie has clearly been the target of many a fight. Her ears are torn, and she came into rescue with several scars. She is very nervous around people, and it takes a soft voice and a lot of patience to get her to be comfortable around people. Bay Creek Kennels in Loganville offered to take her for a few weeks for us at no charge while we worked out a more long term foster for her. With their decades of Doberman experience (they are home to Pamelot Dobermans) we knew that it would be a place Stormie would be cared for. She started to come out of her shell little by little, but once she got into rescue is when she truly blossomed. With 2 male Dobermans to show her the ropes, she learned what it means to play and what inside luxuries are like. Eventually she learned to cuddle and sleep in bed with the rest of the crew. Her foster family has since decided that she absolutely cannot leave them, and we agree. We are excited that Stormie has found her forever home.

Caroline and Annalee
Caroline and Annalee were both taken into the same foster home. As a blue, Caroline’s coat was in worse shape than the others and she required a number of anti fungals and medicated baths to try and relieve her of her infections. She also had an eye infection that needed attention and was mildly dehydrated, and underweight with a number of fresh scars. Annalee had an upper respiratory infection but her skin was in better condition with it mostly being dry, though still with a number of scars on her head, legs and abdomen. Both were put on antibiotics and treated over the course of the months in rescue.

Both Caroline and Annalee slept and slept for the first several days after the ordeal and were kept separated from the rest of the dogs in the home. To this day, Analee will still sometimes wake up crying in the middle of the night, but it’s far less frequent. In the beginning it was every single night, and her foster dad would curl up on the floor with her to help calm her. The girls are slowly earning to play and run and frolic with their brothers and sisters. They are cuddling and sleeping under blankets and being spoiled like they always should have been. They are being adopted by their foster family as soon as they are spayed, and we could not be happier.

There were a number of people that defended this man in his actions as many had been duped into buying dogs form him int he past not knowing the horrors that were on the back of the property. Some people refuse to admit they are wrong and defended his keeping of 116 dogs saying he needed that many to protect the pack and to fend off coyotes. The irony there is that if he only had a couple dogs and they lived inside home, there would be no need for such a thing. GDR is a small rescue consisting of foster homes only with the very rare boarded dog in situations like this. We care for a maximum of 20 dogs at a time, and with all their various medical needs and personalities even that can be difficult at times and there are 4 of us on the board with numerous fosters and volunteers. For one man to properly care for 116 dogs is absolutely impossible. 20 or so dogs died after the bust while in rescue awaiting their release. Their injuries and health were so poor, they could not make it until the court date 4 months later.

We applaud the Judge’s decision to release these dogs to Chester County and can finally sleep easy knowing they will get the love and care that they have always deserved.

Related News Articles:
Judge rules Chester County will keep 101 Dobermans
Judge deciding fate of 100-plus Dobermans