Zoning problem threatens unofficial animal shelter

By CHRIS BRISTOL

YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

For years, Yakima County animal control officers have been bringing stray dogs to Elly and Bill Patnode's unofficial animal rescue shelter in Terrace Heights.

But now, even though the county has a shortage of such facilities, another arm of the county government is trying to shut down their shelter, located in their home on South 45th Street in Terrace Heights, the unincorporated bedroom community just east of Yakima.

County officials have cited the Patnodes for a zoning violation. Since 1968, the zoning in their residential area does not allow "keeping or maintaining" more than four dogs.

The enforcement action comes at a time of increased attention to the problem of stray dogs, in the wake of a horrific attack last week on a man in the Wapato area.

A decision on the fate of the Patnodes' shelter, Barks R Us, rests in the hands of a county hearings examiner Thursday morning. Asked what will happen to the shelter if she and her husband lose the case, Elly Patnode said she's not sure. But she thinks she knows one thing.

"I know what will happen to the dogs," she said."They will die."

Nobody wants to admit it, but that's likelier to happen if the Patnodes' facility closes. The Central Washington Humane Society, which acts as the pound for the county and several cities in the region, including Yakima, is not a no-kill shelter. More dogs in means more dogs will die.

Dave Saunders, a spokesman for the county's building and fire safety division, said that he is unaware of any previous complaints about the shelter but that once a complaint was made, the county had to act.

The case began in August, when the county received a complaint the Patnodes were running a kennel out of their home. County officials investigated the complaint and promptly cited the Patnodes.

The county maintains the Patnodes are operating what amounts to a kennel. The Patnodes, through their attorney, Megan Murphy, dispute that assessment. They say they've been rescuing dogs since long before the zoning restrictions took effect.

They don't dispute that they're operating a shelter. Everybody knows it. The Yakima Herald-Republic published a feature article about them and their shelter three years ago.

The Patnodes receive dogs virtually every day from a variety of sources -- including the Humane Society -- then adopt them out or send them to no-kill shelters in Seattle and Portland.

At any given time, the Patnodes have 10 to 15 dogs, with complete turnover in two weeks or less. Before they send them out, the Patnodes make sure the dogs get their shots and are spayed or neutered.

During a recent tour, the Patnodes' single-story ranch-style house and fenced yard were full of dogs, with the animals going in and out through a dog door. They seemed to gather around Elly Patnode. There were big dogs and little dogs, but there was no fighting. Feeding time, thanks to donations of kibbles from Wal-Mart, was surprisingly tame.

"I think they're doing God's work," said Selah veterinarian Mike Beksinksi, who treats dogs brought in by the Patnodes every week. "They're definitely filling a need. Nobody else is doing it, not even the county."

Indeed, the county's animal control officers have been frequent visitors to the Patnodes' shelter. So are animal control officers for the city of Yakima and several cities in the Lower Valley.

That's because Yakima County is overrun with stray, abandoned or neglected dogs. Officials estimate there may be more than 50,000 unlicensed dogs in the county. Many of them are abused, starving, freezing or injured.

Over the past five years, the Sheriff's Office has received 3,211 complaints about dogs, ranging from complaints about barking to biting. Almost half the incidents were categorized as "vicious."

In 2005 alone, there were 965 complaints, which is probably not a coincidence, given the bad publicity stemming from the October 2004 attack on 4-year-old Jose Basilio of Wapato. A pack of roving dogs mauled the boy in his grandmother's yard, nearly tearing off his arms.

The animal control issue flared again last week when a 55-year-old Wapato man, Lew Yallup, suffered severe leg injuries when five dogs -- four of which belonged to one owner -- attacked him not far from where the boy was attacked three years ago.

Now the county is trying to shut down one of the few rescue shelters in the area. Alan Landvoy, executive director of the Central Washington Humane Society, said it's a shame.

"I'm not sure what the rules and ordinances are," he said. "But what I can tell you is what good the Patnodes do for the animals in this county, and have for a long time."

As far as the rules and ordinances are concerned, county officials say it is clear that the Barks R Us shelter is in violation of the zoning for the neighborhood they live in.

The fact that it flew under the radar for so many years is beside the point. Only recently did the Patnodes learn who made the complaint -- a retired Yakima police sergeant named Earl Swoap who owns property in the area but now lives in Las Vegas.

Swoap did not return a call Tuesday seeking comment. In a letter to the county, he said he's never seen the Patnodes' shelter but complained that one of his sons once reported dogs from the shelter got loose. He also mentioned some previous conflicts with the Patnodes back in the 1970s.

"Personally I would not want an animal rescue station or any other like type operation in the area," he wrote. "These are homes, not farms."

As for the issue of county agencies working at cross purposes to one another, the county's Saunders said nobody's perfect. A call seeking comment from the animal control department was not returned.

"Once we know about it," Saunders said of his staff, "we don't get to look the other way."