RE: Statement of Direct Interaction with Sabrina Pugh
December 30, 2008
To Whom It May Concern:
I confirm that I have known Sabrina Pugh for one year and nine months. In that time we
have established a social relationship during our daily commutes, at dog conformation
shows, and in her home. During multiple instances I have had the opportunity to
participate in discussions directly related to Mrs. Pugh’s relationship with the Rathje’s,
and her stewardship role as caretaker and handler of Admirabulls Cinderella Man aka.
“Jimmy”. In addition to my direct conversations with Mrs. Pugh I have had the
opportunity, during in home visits to witness the living conditions in which Jimmy
lived, as well as the care that he and the other numerous animals in the house did or did
not receive. The intent of this letter is to provide information related to these direct
interactions between Mrs. Pugh and myself over the last twenty one months.
Statement of Incidents
On multiple occasions I was granted access to the home of Mrs. Pugh. Upon my second
visit to her home I was witness to a flea infestation within the home caused by the
adoption of a newly obtained stray feline. The fleas were all over the home, including in
the cages and living area inhabited by the animals. All of the animals were itching and
showing signs of the flea infestation.
On various occasions Mrs. Pugh allowed me to enter her home in order to interact with
the puppies that were sired by Jimmy. While appearing physically healthy from afar, the
puppies were almost always covered in their own feces and urine which was allowed to
remain in their puppy crate and play pen for long periods of time. On multiple
occasions when attempting to handle one of the puppies I would discover clumps of
dried or wet feces and urine on their bodies. In addition urine and feces was allowed to
pool in a collection tray beneath the puppy pen. While this is normal the fact that it was
allowed to remain there without cleaning for several days was disturbing to me
especially considering it was located inside of Mrs. Pugh’s home. On more than one
occasion I asked Mrs. Pugh about this condition and she stated that she would empty
the dirty tray once every four or five days, but no more as it was not easy to perform the
task.
On more than one occasion Mrs. Pugh would tell me about leaving her dogs in their
crates for up to or beyond twelve hours at a time. When I inquired as to the prudency of
such an action as it would surely lead to standing feces and urine in the crate, as well as
poorly conditioned animals, Mrs. Pugh described it as “no big deal”. She would simply
sleep until she was ready to get up and then clean the crates off as well as the dogs when
she awoke. While I can understand a situation such as this occurring on rare occasions
due to unavoidable circumstances, I find it difficult to believe that allowing this to
happen on a regular basis was acceptable for anyone. Mrs. Pugh however attested to this
event occurring on an almost weekly basis, especially on Saturdays when she wanted to
sleep late.
Mrs. Pugh and I held numerous conversations related to the condition of Jimmy as it
related to his health and show ring presentation. On one occasion we were discussing
the Rathje’s disappointment with Jimmy’s physical condition. This took place following
a period of time in which the Rathje’s had taken Jimmy to a show in another state. Mrs.
Pugh spoke with me about the Rathje’s desire to condition Jimmy with daily walks, and
proper diet. Mrs. Pugh stated that she did not want to take the time to walk Jimmy even
if it was just five minutes a day. This surprised me as the request for conditioning time
seemed minimal, and easy to adhere to. She told me that she could not take the time to
help him put on muscle and would simply feed him more around the time that the
Rathje’s would take possession of him for a show. Mrs. Pugh also stated that she
considered telling the Rathje’s just to keep Jimmy after this show so that they could get
him into shape as she did not have time or the desire to do so. When I inquired as to
why she did not go ahead and tell them to keep him, she said that she wanted him back
to have and be with the puppies that he was to sire with one of Mrs. Pugh’s other
bitches.
Mrs. Pugh’s attitude toward the Rathje’s changed decidedly when they informed her of
their decision not to breed Jimmy to one of their champion bitches. Mrs. Pugh had
talked about the possibility for months, saying that all she really wanted was a puppy
from Jimmy. She told me that the Rathje’s had expressed concern over breeding Jimmy
as he may have several traits/issues that were not ideal for breeding into another
generation. At this time Mrs. Pugh told me that she then asked the Rathje’s for
permission to breed Jimmy to one of her own bitches, to which they expressed great
concern, and provided reasons why it should not be done. Mrs. Pugh told me that she
had decided to do the breeding anyway, stating that they would not be happy but
would not be able to stop her from doing so. Once this breeding occurred Jimmy’s
condition noticeably deteriorated. While still a physically healthy dog, he was noticeably
undersized for his age, showed little muscle definition, and lacked grooming as his coat
was constantly dirty and odorous, his ears were full of wax (and he was constantly
getting ear infections), and his facial wrinkles were dirty and odorous. This is not the
kind of condition that a show dog of any fashion should be kept in. I can attest to these
conditions as I was a guest in Mrs. Pugh’s home on many occasions.
On numerous occasions I heard Mrs. Pugh refer to the Rathje’s as Jimmy’s owners, and
that she was required to follow their instructions as to the care of, breeding of, and show
career of Jimmy.
I can also attest to the fact that Mrs. Pugh has maintained higher than the legal number
of adult dogs within her home, as I witnessed this as an invited guest.
In closing let me state that I hold no ill will toward Mrs. Pugh. As you can see we have
participated in an amicable relationship that included carpooling, and numerous in
home visits. I do however hold major concern over the well being of her animals, and
have been witness to several acts that I would consider to not be in the best interest of
Jimmy, or of the bulldog breed.
Yours Faithfully,
Brian L. Sheets