KY: Dog Warden Charged with Animal Cruelty

This video depicts a dog in obvious need of veterinary care (long overdue). It was allegedly shot inside the Webster County dog pound in KY. The conditions the surrounding dogs are living in are evident in the clip. After seeing the video and some photographs, the local TV station went to the pound with the KY state police. The dog warden, John Dunn, did not want the camera crew inside the pound and seemed to know who his friends in high places were right away:

Dunn: "You probably need to talk to the judge executive. Or the county attorney."

NEWS 25: "Okay, you can't tell us anything about those wounds on the dog, or the video that we saw?"

Dunn: "I'm not collaborating on none of it."

Good to know. The news crew pressed on:

The outside pens reek of urine and feces...we see it in the cages. Food and water bowls are too high for little dogs. One of the older dogs won't stop whimpering

NEWS 25: "You're saying there's nothing going on in here?"

Dunn: "No. I try to help every dog I can help. I mean I don't know who put this out on the Internet, that's just dirt. They're trying to pull up a lot of problems."

[...]

"People's getting real nosey, than what they should be. Because they don't know what goes on in this facility," Dunn says.

The judge executive never returned our call or acknowledged our request to go inside the pound.

Based on what the KY state police saw inside the pound, one count of animal cruelty - a misdemeanor in KY - was filed against the warden. And it seems he does indeed know who his friends are:

Judge Executive Townsend said that he has no plans to remove John Dunn as dog warden.

And in fact:

One day after NEWS 25 broke the story, we decided to head back to Webster County, to question the Judge Executive about the dog pound. Thursday, Kentucky State Police charged John Dunn, the county's dog warden, with animal cruelty. A day later, the Judge Executive told us it's all a mistake.

Judge Executive Jim Townsend stands by Dunn, calling him the best warden Webster County has ever seen.

The BFFs gave their side of the story to the local news:

"We need a new facility," Webster County Judge Executive Jim Townsend said. "We know that, but we just don't have the finances to do it."

The pound only has eight pens, and many are filled with several dogs.

Also, at the entrance to the facility, there are two large freezers holding dead animals.

"When you come into the door, the first thing you see is a freezer," Dunn said. "That is no good, I know that."

"That is a disturbing thing," Townsend said.

You know what else is disturbing? The Good Ol' Boys Club in the South. Just sayin'.

Compassionate members of the community are pooling resources to try and help the dogs at the pound.