A breeder of dogs for the illegal bloodsport of dogfighting has been sentenced to 15 years in prison! Raymond Eugene Teamer, 42, of Milton, FL, was charged with 35 counts of training or baiting animals for fighting and two counts of processing or selling dogfighting equipment, all third-degree felonies.

In November 2007, after 7 months of investigation, Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s investigators found 30 dogs and puppies along with a cache of medicine and equipment and a 10-page document that detailed how to train and condition dogs for fighting at Teamer’s house.

Many of the dogs were covered in battle scars, one, a five-time champion named Willie, was missing the entire lower portion of his jaw.

Many of the dogs were tethered using heavy chains, one a 22 lb chain. This became one of the key pieces of evidence as prosecutors explained to the jury how these incredibly heavy chains were used to build up the dogs’ strength for fighting.

“It’s a pretty grotesque scene,” John Simon said of the underground sport of dog fighting.

Simon and his co-prosecutor, Bridgette Jensen, showed the jury dozens of grisly photographs of scared dogs, and dead dogs investigators found in the woods near Teamer’s property.

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A woman who currently lives in Naples was contacted by Miami-Dade animal services to say one of her two dogs was recovered over a year later.

This from ASPCA, a health alert and warning about Sago Palm plants. Poisonings are up, people need to know the dangers!

Daydreaming of a sandy beach and a breeze shimmying through the palm trees? Paradise, right? Not so fast, says Fido. Though palm trees evoke relaxation of the highest order, Sago palm (Cycas revolute)—a stocky member of the Cycad family of plants—is downright dangerous to our furry companions.

According to the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC) in Urbana, IL, pet poisonings from the increasingly popular plant are on the rise. Since 2003, the Center has seen an increase in cases of Sago palm and Cycad poisonings by more than 200 percent. APCC data also reveals that 50 percent to 75 percent of those cases resulted in fatalities.

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