Power of the Paw! Your help is needed in Animal Cruelty case!!

Thanks to Jake and Just Harry for barking this story to me!
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Marc-Andre Laporte, 59, was found guilty of two counts of animal cruelty at the St. Jerome courthouse in Montreal this week, following the seizure of 97 fox terriers in November 2005 from his Blainville puppy mill. Judge Jean Sirois rejected Laporte's argument that he loved his dogs too much. When police raided the property, they found dogs matted in feces feeding on dogs' carcasses and stronger dogs preying on weaker ones.

Click here -- if you have a strong stomach -- to see the photos:
http://www.spcamontreal.com/english/pages/whats_new/news.html

Almost 40 animals had to be destroyed. Laporte's home was later condemned and demolished in March 2006. The surviving dogs were cared for by the SPCA and later, with the help of devoted fox terrier lovers, found wonderful foster homes where they have been living for the past 2 years. Despite his horrendous treatment of these innocent creatures, Laporte, who wil be sentenced on February 22, 2008, is facing only six months of jail time and up to $4,000 in fines. At the same hearing, the judge is to decide if Laporte is to get any of his fox terriers back!

WE CANNOT ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN. The surviving mill fox terriers took months to recover physically, medically and emotionally from their ordeal. To even consider removing ONE wire from the safety and care of their loving foster families back to Laporte is OUTRAGEOUS!

Today we are launching a two-fold campaign to prevent Laporte from getting his dog/s back. We know we can count on you to take action and spread the word:

1: Please go to http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/no-dogs-for-laporte to sign the online petition that has been set up. Once all the signatures are entered, it will be printed out and given to Elizabeth Pierce who has been instrumental in saving and caring for the Blainville wires, for distribution to the media (unfortunately it is illegal in Canada to hand petitions to the court).

2: Please take a few minutes to write a letter to Judge Jean Sirois imploring him to prevent Laporte from ever taking possession of his former fox terriers or of owning any dog again. If you can, include a photo of yourself and your foxie/dog. All the letters received will be put in a file and also handed to the media.

Letters should be mailed to:

Elizabeth Pierce
119 16th Street,
Roxboro, Québec
Canada H8Y 1P1.

The sentencing hearing is February 22, 2008 – so write those letters soon. Please cross-post this information on your blogs, to your fellow dog owners etc. Thank you for your support in this important matter.

Remember, this could have happened to any of us or our friends. It's not just about wire fox terriers. It's about treating all animals with the love and respect they deserve.