| DESCRIPTION/NOTES |
Trainer/Owner Agganis was transporting 18 greyhounds from Iowa to Florida when 3 greyhounds died in his care. He dropped the 3 deceased greyhounds off at the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League for cremation. The Peggy Adams ARL contacted the Palm Beach County Animal Care & Control Division regarding the 3 greyhounds, Tess, Legacy & Judy. The bodies of the greyhounds were impounded by the Animal Care & Control Division for necropsies & results were to be shred with DBPR upon completion. DBPR conducted it's own investigation and according to Agganis, he left Davenport, IA at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 8/5/08 with 6 greyhounds in the rear covered bed of his truck and 12 in the air conditioned trailer. Agganis has his truck set up so that cool air from the truck's AC blows into the truck bed to keep the 6 greyhounds in the truck bed cool during transport. He reported that it was approximately 100 degrees outside. 4-5 hours into the trip, Agganis heard one of the greyhounds in the truck bed in distress (Tess). He stopped to investigate and found the dog to be hot. He checked the other two greyhounds that were in the truck bed on the same side as Tess and found them to be hot, as well. He moved the other two greyhounds (Legacy & Judy) to the air conditioned trailer and after rubbing ice and cold water all over Tess, he put her in the cab of the truck. He also bought 10 pounds of ice and put it in the truck bed to keep the area cooler. Tess passed away up front. about 12 hours into the trip, Agganis pulled over to check on the other distressed greyhounds, and found Legacy to be experiencing the same symptoms as Tess. He moved Legacy to the cab where she passed away, as well. When Agganis arrived at Palm Beach Kennel Club, he found Judy has passed away in the air conditioned trailer. He stated that the air temp in the trailer was 80 degrees, and a check of the truck bed revealed an approximate temp of 81 degrees. Necropsy results revealed that all 3 greyhounds died of heat stroke. However, due to what the Animal Control & DBPR investigators term as, "lack of evidence", no negligence could be found and case was closed without action. |