WINNIPEG — An elderly couple at the centre of one of the most serious cases of animal hoarding in the province could go to jail.
Peter and Judith Chernecki, who are in their 60s, pleaded guilty in April to animal abuse associated with the seizure of 64 dogs from a Gull Lake property in 2010.
“This is the worse case of dog hoarding I have seen,” said Dr. Colleen Marion, a provincial veterinarian who deemed the dogs in distress at the time.
The couple was in court Tuesday for sentencing. The judge in the case heard all the arguments but delayed passing sentence until a later date.
Prosecutors are seeking four months in jail for Peter, more than $70,000 in fines, probation and a five-year prohibition from owning animals for both of them.
The defence asked that the couple be given a probationary sentence.
After a complaint in July 2010, provincial officials found the dogs in crammed, dark and filthy buildings on the Gull Lake property.
The dogs were kept in the dark, living with rats under the floorboards of two buildings, drinking dirty water and afraid of humans.
The dogs were so matted with dirt and feces, they had to be shaved, and their teeth were rotting and broken.
Some dogs sustained serious wounds from fights with other dogs.
“They had multiple medical concerns including bite wounds,” said Marion, “severe ear infections, one dog had a wound that almost his entire scalp was exposed.”
Of the 64 dogs, 34 had to be euthanized.
The buildings they lived in, likely for years, were deemed unsafe and had to be destroyed.
The Cherneckis currently have 42 cats living in their home, court was told Tuesday.
The Crown prosecutor expressed concern that the couple is again hoarding animals.
“We’re heading down the same slope the dogs were in.”
Staff from Darcy’s ARC (Animal Rescue Centre) and the Winnipeg Humane Society who helped care for the dogs were in court and expressed shock at the details.
Two women who adopted some of the dogs wiped away tears when they heard how the dogs were treated.
In a presentence report, Peter Chernecki said they were helping the dogs.
“The animals were better off with him and his wife than being euthanized,” the Crown read. “He says caring for the dogs gave him and his wife purpose,” and “nothing was wrong with the dogs.”
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