These dogs are getting their day

The dozens of small terrier- and chihuahua-mix dogs dumped in Stillwater, Lafayette and Wantage in March are healing, learning about the comforts of home in foster care and finding their forever families.

These “happy tails” are made possible by the outpouring of community support and the efforts of rescues, animal control officers, and veterinarians from around the region.

The investigation

The breakthrough in the case came from an anonymous tip to Sussex County Crime Stoppers.

The multi-agency Sussex County Crime Stoppers, led by Sheriff Michael Strada, is part of an international civilian organization that offers cash rewards for anonymous tips that lead to arrest, charges or indictments. The group meets monthly to discuss incoming tips and receive information on outcomes from local law enforcement.

Hilary Manser, chief of staff for the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office, said that the tip leading to the dump case breakthrough came through on March 17, and was deemed immediately valuable because it had credible details that the general public could not have known.

“The tipster was so brave to do this,” Manser said. “And this is a huge thing for an organization like Crime Stoppers. This type of tip puts the spark back into the work.”

The tipster also reached out to the New Jersey State Police, which allowed for a cooperative, multi-agency response to the dump. Manser said that while the State Police focused on the investigation, the Sheriff’s Office and other agencies were able to target their efforts on the rescue and recovery of the dogs.

Drones

A call for assistance from Wantage Animal Control led to the use of thermal imaging drones to find two dogs at the Wantage dump site, technology which was also used to recover several dogs near Swartswood Lake in Stillwater.

According to Advexure, a California-based provider of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), “thermal drones equip professionals with the tools to see what’s invisible to the naked eye. From locating missing persons in dense forests during search and rescue missions to identifying hotspots in firefighting and pinpointing equipment failures in utility inspections.”

The rescue effort included the Emergency Management Team and sheriff’s officers, along with Stillwater Township Mayor and Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Lisa Chammings, Jeanette Campbell of Hound Hunters, Inc., and Newton Animal Control.

“We were out in full force,” Manser said, “We had OEM staff with drones and officers on the ground. Many of the dogs had run down near the water, and these were older dogs having trouble walking, lots with poor muscle tone. Kudos to Newton Animal Control for being onsite and immediately taking any live and deceased dogs into their care and handling those needs, and kudos to the property owners who, without hesitation, allowed us access for our operations.”

The rescue efforts also highlighted the skill of the drone operators and their equipment. Manser said they were able to pinpoint the exact location of the dogs in the underbrush and along the banks of the lake.

“Given the volume of dogs involved and the criminality of the incident, this was a good exercise for our drone crews,” Manser said, “Without the services of the drones, I don’t think we’d have been able to recover as many dogs as we did so quickly.”

Not every dog was an easy capture.

“The terrier dogs were runners and the chihuahua dogs were hiders. There was a terrier mix down at the Duck Pond (in Stillwater) who jumped right into the pond, swam across, and kept running on the other side,” said Manser. “We dubbed him ‘Michael Phelps’ for the way he took off in the water. He was eventually recovered after giving us such a hard time.”

Court hearings underway

Four individuals stand accused of various cruelty offenses: Joshua Ciemniecki, 19, and Kaila McNeill, 30, were charged in Sussex County on multiple counts of animal torture and failure to provide care while Robert Ciemniecki, 74, and Frances Ciemniecki, 71, face charges in Warren County on multiple counts of failure to provide care and failure to provide care leading to death.

All four are residents of Phillipsburg, where police say they had been the subject of an ongoing hoarding investigation.

Joshua Ciemniecki and McNeill appeared in Sussex County Superior Court on April 20, for a pre-indictment hearing. Prosecutors asked for and were granted an extension to continue gathering evidence, citing mounting recovery expenses and ongoing veterinary costs.

Also in court that day was the chihuahua-mix known as Tiny Tim, along with his companion dog, Hero. The pair was recovered in Stillwater Township on March 18 after Hero led rescuers to Tiny Tim, where the small older dog was stuck near a dock on Swartswood Lake, unable to use his back legs. After extensive veterinary care, he is recovering in foster care with Hound Hunters, Inc.’s and may soon move to a permanent home.

Campbell of Hound Hunters, Inc., said Tiny Tim’s appearance in court gave the prosecutors and judge a sense of the diminutive size of the dumped dogs and the neglect they suffered.

Ciemniecki and McNeill are next scheduled to appear in Sussex County Superior Court on May 18.

Robert and Frances Ciemniecki are slated for a pre-indictment conference at the Warren County Superior Courthouse in Belvidere on May 26.

Animal rights advocates continue to ask the public for signatures on a pair of change.org petitions asking for prosecutors in both Warren and Sussex counties to push for maximum penalties for all accused parties.

Animal cruelty convictions in New Jersey carry fines up to $1,000 for the first offense and up to $2,000 for each additional conviction, as well as the potential for up to six months of imprisonment. Convictions can also carry restrictions on owning animals as well as restitution for expenses like veterinary care.

“While they were dumped with zero regard for their well-being, they were all given the gift of a new life, like a new birthday for each of these dogs,” Manser said. “They are learning what it’s like to be loved and cared for in homes where people want them and are helping them heal.”