shelter, dangerous pens cited after inspection.
Date: 03/31/04
Day: Wednesday
Section: LOCAL NEWS
Page: B-1
Byline: Ryan Robinson
Subject: LAW; VIOLATION; ANIMALS; BUSINESS; TRIAL; INVESTIGATION
Keys: COURT RULING


A Ronks kennel owner was found guilty Tuesday of two state dog
law violations.

Gap District Justice Isaac Stoltzfus ruled that Daniel P. Esh, 68 Clearview
Road, was guilty of failing to provide sufficient shelter for some dogs in
outside pens, and of not keeping metal-strand flooring in good repair.

"I think there were clear violations,'' Stoltzfus said, before requesting
that his further comments not be made public.

Esh was fined $600 plus court costs.

The citations were filed by Rick Burd of the state Bureau of Dog Law
Enforcement after his Jan. 16 inspection of Esh's kennel.

Three other citations were dismissed.

The kennel is one of several in Lancaster County to fail to pass inspections
in recent years. That has prompted animal rights advocates to ask government
officials to shut down kennels they call "puppy mills.''

The citations were the latest of several steps taken by local and state
officials against Esh and his Clear-View Kennel.

"The goal of the bureau is to have kennels gain compliance with the law and
regulations,'' said Mary Bender, the new dog law enforcement director. She
declined specific comment on the Esh case.

About seven animal rights advocates and kennel owners quietly sat outside
the courtroom during the three-hour hearing.

Burd said when he visited the kennel Jan. 16, it was 12 degrees and windy.
"There was no bedding provided in outdoor pens for this cold, severe
weather,'' he said.

Esh's lawyer, Pat Zimmerman, said bedding was not required by law if the
kennel owner instead provided other protection from the weather. Esh's wood
boxes were insulated with Styrofoam, he said.

"If I was ever told by the state to put shavings in, I would have done it,''
Esh said.

Burd said he also found some of the vinyl-coated wire flooring in some dog
pens had places where the wire had broken, causing a danger of injury to
dogs.

Esh contended that he quickly repaired such problems after detecting them.

Esh's battle to keep his kennel operating is not over.   He said Tuesday
that he no longer has a federal license, but that he doesn't need one
because he does not plan to wholesale any more dogs, just retail.

Bender said his state license also is currently not valid. Her office turned
down Esh's request for renewal based on the Jan. 16 inspection.

Esh has appealed that decision to a state administrative hearing court,
Bender said.   He also has reapplied for a state license. Bender said that
will trigger a re-inspection of the kennel in the "very near future.''

If Esh passes that inspection, the state hearing would be moot, she said,
and Esh's license would be reinstated.

Until Esh gets back his state license, he is not allowed to sell any dogs.


Leacock Township, where the kennel is located, also has an outstanding issue
with Esh, according to township solicitor Frank Mincarelli.   Mincarelli
said today that Esh paid $1,400 for the township's legal fees in reaching a
settlement after the township sued Esh for having too many dogs in his
kennel last year.

But Esh has not gone back before the zoning hearing board to get necessary
approval for his kennel, Mincarelli said.

Esh said Tuesday he has an average of about 450 dogs housed in the kennel at
any one time throughout the year.   "He is not in compliance with the
settlement agreement,''

Mincarelli said, "but the state is pursuing him. I don't think the township
wants to pile on at this point.''   Mincarelli said Esh plans to build a new
facility to house dogs so the township doesn't see it necessary to fight
with Esh over the current facility.