15 Labs up for adoption following nearly yearlong animal cruelty case

A 65-year-old Casco Township woman pleaded no contest to two counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty to one animal and was ordered to forfeit 32 dogs and pay a total restitution of $104,000, according to a St. Clair County press release. 

Pamela Dawn Smith, a doctor of veterinary medicine, accepted the plea June 10. Her lawyer was not immediately available for comment Friday morning. According to state records, Smith has a veterinary license out of Oakland County. 

The court case has been ongoing since Smith was arraigned in August 2020, and now 15 of the dogs are available for adoption. 

"A search warrant was executed July 14, 2020. on the 8000 block of Marine City Highway after multiple complaints of an unlicensed kennel in deplorable conditions," according to the county. "Upon arrival, Animal Control found 32 Labrador Retrievers in a poorly ventilated, dusty basement and attached garage. The dogs were housed in crates with trays filled with cat litter and days’ worth of feces and urine."

Animal Control requested assistance from the Capital Area Humane Society to help care for the dogs, most of which were in poor condition with skin, eye, and ear infections. Blue Water Humane Society and Furget Us Not Rescue also assisted in caring for the dogs.

A special weekend adoption event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 26 and June 27 by appointment at St. Clair County Animal Control, 3378 Griswold Road, Port Huron Township. Fifteen of the labs will be available for adoption, as well as other dogs, cats, and kittens.

Appointments for adoptions can be scheduled via email or by calling (810) 984-3155.

“This is the longest case in which St. Clair County Animal Control has had to hold animals as live evidence,” Animal Control Director Melissa Miller said in a statement. “Our staff has done an exceptional job over the past 329 days. We are thrilled to see these dogs able to move on to their forever homes.”

Miller said the labs are black, chocolate and yellow and range in age from just over 1 year to close to 8. 

"So they were in crates on scene and then they had to live for almost a year in a shelter, so we’ve been trying to do a lot of enrichments with them and bring the world to them since they can't go out in the world as evidence," she said. 

Miller said families adopting the dogs will need to have patience as the animals adjust to a home environment. 

"They're pretty happy-go-lucky dogs, our staff has done an unbelievable job with providing them with play groups and enrichments and new experiences, as much as we can within our four walls," she said. 

Miller said there are more than 100 animals currently at the shelter. 

St. Clair County Animal Control urges anyone aware of animal collecting, cruelty or neglect to report the conditions to (810) 984-3155 or animalcontrol@stclaircounty.org.

Contact Liz Shepard at (810) 989-6273 or lshepard@gannett.com.