GREENVILLE - Tuesday's custody hearing concerning last week’s seizure of more than 100 animals from a south Hunt County property is the same place where nearly 250 animals were seized in July.
The owner of the various birds, rabbits, cats and dogs was reportedly raising the animals to sell them at area flea markets. The SPCA alleges they were being kept in inhumane conditions. The organization joined with Hunt County officials on August 28 to conduct the seizure at a location on Private Road 2321.
A custody hearing before Judge Sheila Linden is set for this afternoon.
Tuesday's hearing comes just days after a new law putting restrictions on puppy mills had gone into effect in Texas. The Dog or Cat Breeders Act, passed in 2011, states people who have 11 or more adult non-spayed female dogs and cats and sell more than 20 dogs or cats a year will now have to be licensed with the state. That includes an initial inspection and further inspections every 18 months.
As of late August, the SPCA reported 419 animals had been rescued from puppy mills that kept them in substandard conditions.
