A little over a year ago I posted a report about a handler who had 7 dogs die in her care due to heatstroke. She went to trial and was sentenced to 8 years in prison for her negligence. Her name was Mary Wild. I just thought I'd post the outcome of the trial for everyone that was interested.

Thank you Patty for reporting the outcome....as much as I don't want to revisit this horror, we all need to be reminded of what can happen with dogs in our care that are depending on us to make the right decisions for their welfare.
I am a bit surprised by the severity of the outcome, but it sends a strong message to the fancy and to professional handlers to do the right thing, remain vigilant, and make decisions based on the dogs' welfare and comfort, not expediency, cost, time conflicts, human comfort, or the handler's issues at the moment.
Junior handlers are taught to attend to the dogs' comfort before their own, and as I remember correctly, the junior handler in this case begged the professional handler to let her take the dogs out of the hot garage they were locked up in, and the PH declined her request. Bet she'll be regretting that decision in jail. These deaths are inexcusable.

Sorry Patty, but I think you read that she could've faced up to 8 years in jail, instead she got probation and community work

http://www.thedogpress.com/Columns/Mary-Wild-Sentenced-10071_Andrews.asp

http://rottweilers.brilliant-disguise.net/tag/mary-wild/

That is very sad, she deserved jail time. I hope the judge gets voted out in the next election. She was not even denied the ability of owning animals.....

Probation is a slap on the hand!!! Shocked that's all she got.
Ms. Wild has been in dogs her whole life, INCLUDING Junior Showmanship!!!
Very sad situation, but COMPLETELY preventable.

She wasn't a professional, only an agent. Huge difference between someone that calls themselves an agent and a professional. True professionals are certified. They have criteria to meet before they can call themselves such and be certified.

Regardless though, it's unfortunate that it happened and she will live with this the rest of her life. That alone is grave punishment.

There are a number of "professional" handlers who are not "certified", do not belong to any regulatory association such as the PHA, etc. but have plenty of high paying clients.

Sorry I didn't read the whole article through. Here's the copy, no doubt she will face AKC sanctions and can and should be banned from AKC for life.

Mary Wild was sentenced today in what one handler called "a shocking mockery of justice." Onsite coverage, background and reaction to the sentence.


Wild faced 8 years in prison for causing the gruesome death of her vanload of show dogs. A former friend of the Wild family summed it up this way "I've known Mary Wild for years. It was no accident, it was gross neglect and prison is nothing compared to what those dogs went through before they finally died."


The Dog world waited nearly a year, through delay after delay. Finally, the day of sentencing by Judge Raymond Dickhaner. We will have a dog person's report from the Missouri courtroom, but in the meantime, Mark Schnyder, the KMOV-TV reporter who covered the Mary Wild case from day one give us his reaction below. And next week, the interview with Monica Colvin whose Akita died in Mary's care.



DOG HANDLER MARY WILD SENTENCEDIf there is anyone who doesn't know how this all started, please, before you read about Wild's sentence and how it all came down, go to MARY WILD CHARGED, the story begins... and you will understand why very few, other than Mary's family, her attorney, and the judge feel justice was served.



And then there's this: Code of Ethics for Registered Handlers. Mary Wild was NOT an AKC registered handlers but had she applied, she should have had to sign this, the very first section...

I agree to: Ensure that the welfare of the dogs in my care is a priority, not only at dog shows but at home and on the road. Their well-being, security, and safety is to be placed above all other business considerations. The ultimate responsibility for the dogs cannot be transferred to assistants or others.

Obviously the welfare of the dogs was not a priority for Wild. Incredibly Mary Wild and her mother have sent out an email suggesting the only reason she was charged was because of the junior handler and her father writing crazy letters to the judge. The dogs were Mary's responsibility and AKC registered handler or not, no blame for anything can be shifted to the teenager.

Read the upcoming interview with Monica Colvin, owner of Ch. Jersey, the top winning female Akita that was entrusted to Mary Wild.



The Dog Press has worked with Mark Schnyder, a reporter at KMOV-TV [here] from the beginning of the Mary Wild case. It's only fitting that he tell it as he saw it, and with measured restraint.


25-year old Mary Wild cried a bit as she read a prepared statement to the judge before her sentencing. After being convicted of eight counts of animal abuse a month ago in the deaths of 7 show dogs she left in a hot van in front of her house a June night last year, Mary said she was making a heartfelt apology to the owners of the dogs who died in her care. She said she would have never knowingly hurt the dogs and with live with this the rest of her life and she is sorry.

She was not interested in speaking to us afterwards but her lawyer Brad Dede did. He said Mary's life has changed and she has learned her lesson. That's something some show dog owners aren't quite ready to believe. But Dede went on to say he believes Mary Wild still has something to offer the dog show world, even if she can't be in it. Perhaps she could educate young handlers on not making the mistake she made.

Some would argue anyone with common sense wouldn't have made the mistake she made. The people who's lives she changed by destroying their dogs because of her bad judgment do not appear to be filled with hate. Not the three owners who showed up in the courtroom today at least. One guy actually said he'd let Mary take care of a dog in the future. Another said she would like to see Mary banned for life by the American Kennel Club. That could very well happen.

In sentencing Mary, the judge said he felt having her sit in a county jail would serve no purpose. Neither would picking up trash on the side of the road for community service. Instead he wants her doing her time helping out at the Jefferson County Animal Control Center. Since it's clear she didn't intentially kill the show dogs, he thinks she has something to offer with her expertise in caring for dogs her entire life.

I would have loved to speak with Mary and hear in her own words why she did what she did and how this has changed her. I don't count reading a brief, prepared statement before the court,(likely written by someone else) as really speaking to what happened.

Like Mary said in her statement though, she'll live with this for the rest of her life. I believe that. How could she not. I hope she can go on and do some good in the world.

Mark Schnyder is a reporter at KMOV-TV. He can be reached at mschnyder@kmov.com.

What a sad situation we're reminded. What an unfair, unjust decision made by the judge. Obviously, the judge was not an animal lover.

Judges are not usually voted in, they are assigned.
:-/

I used to wonder what an agent was.

Then I had a couple and their *agent* approach me for a pup from a frozen semen litter from which they wanted the pick male pup. The stud dog was deceased and they claimed to love seeing him in the ring when alive. They wanted his top get. They literally demanded the pup, offered a much higher price and I refused to work with all of them.

"Well, excuse me couple and their *agent*" I said, "this is my litter and you can't demand any puppy from me or anyone else " .

The agent was being paid to get them the right puppy for show and then handle a pup to his Championship eventually.

Had I known all of this, I never would have allowed them on my property.

I had never heard of an agent like that, is it common for agents to also locate pups for this type of buyer?

Read about the testimony of her assistant, which btw lost her beloved Dalmatian in the incident.

http://bullmarketfrogs.com/blog/2010/07/thatll-teach-her/

It makes me crazy so much laziness and stupidity. Hopefully other handlers read about it and pay more attention to the care of the dogs in their custody, and us as owners to ask more questions to those handlers that we entrust our beloved dogs.

Asking questions does no good whatsoever. Nor does watching ringside. What handler will tell you problems they have caused for the dogs they handle? What is the likelihood that you will actually see a problem occurring in the short time you are observing.

People always think that their handler wouldn't cause a problem for their dogs. Denial is an amazing thing. If you want to assure good care for your animal, don't put dogs out with handlers.