Kennel And Animal Rescue Owner Charged With 5 Counts of Animal Cruelty

BEDFORD, NY — A Bedford woman who owns a facility that purports to be dedicated to caring for animals has been arrested for mistreating some of those animals, according to law enforcement officials.

The SPCA Westchester said today that their Humane Law Enforcement Unit (HLE), under the direction of Ernest Lungaro, arrested Penny Berk of Bedford and charged her with 5 counts of animal cruelty.

On October 3, SPCA Westchester officials were tipped off by several witnesses to a "dire situation" involving four sick Bernese Mountain Dog puppies who were being denied proper medical care at Rescue Right in Northwind Kennels, according to the officials.

On October 4, the SPCA’s HLE Director, Medical Director, staff veterinary technician, and a NYS Health Department official visited the kennels in Bedford and discovered that all four puppies and their mom, Annabelle, were suffering and in critical condition.

One of the puppies could barely breathe and was nonresponsive, according to the SPCA officials, who immediately rushed Annabelle and her babies to a private veterinary hospital where all five were diagnosed with a serious and deadly disease known as the Distemper Virus.

Unfortunately, one of the puppies could not be saved and had to be humanely euthanized upon arrival, according to vets. Over the next six days, despite round the clock veterinary care and treatment, the remaining littermates and Annabelle were euthanized to prevent further suffering.

Distemper is highly preventable with proper vaccinations and timely medical care, health officials said.

"If the dogs had not been denied veterinary treatment, their outcome could have been very different," SPCA officials said in a statement. "Annabelle originated from an Amish Pennsylvania puppy mill and was brought to Rescue Right along with an un-neutered male Bernese Mountain Dog. Sometime after their arrival at Northwind Kennels/Rescue Right the unneutered male was co-kenneled with Annabelle, who was unspayed and subsequently impregnated."

Berk’s next court appearance is scheduled for August 28.

Officials urge anyone who witnesses or suspects an animal being abused or neglected to call the SPCA Westchester’s Cruelty Hotline at 914-941-7797.