“Hello. Can you go and look at this kennel. I can’t bear to see the misery another winter.”
The tip was sent to the Östergötland County Administrative Board in November 2013. It was the fourth time that the supervisory authority received a report about the dog kennel outside Linköping. The first report came already in 2010 from an anonymous tipster who felt “shocked by the number of dogs” that were not cared for properly, and in 2012 a reporter wrote about 95 dirty puppies living locked in small cages.
Alarm about suspected animal cruelty for several years
Over the course of 14 years, eleven people have alerted the County Administrative Board about suspected animal cruelty at the breeder, documents that SVT Nyheter Öst have seen show. Two of the complainants write that the kennel hides the dogs in the forest tied to trees.
Common to all notifications is that the tipsters want the county administrative board to go to the kennel for a check.
– A large number of tips come into a large number of businesses. We are not able to supervise all tips. It is a question of priorities, says Kristoffer Hellberg of the Östergötland County Administrative Board.
A control of 13 years
In addition to the year 2011 when the dog kennel received its permit for animal breeding and the immediate care in August 2024, the county administrative board has visited the breeder for control once. It was 2018.
– At that time, we could not ascertain any deficiencies that led to custody or injunctions, says Kristoffer Hellberg.
123 dachshunds were taken into emergency care
In August 2024, the county board received a phone call from the Swedish Kennel Club who wanted to make a report of concern. They had tried to conduct a routine check, but the owner did not open the door. According to the conversation, there was a strong smell of ammonia and piles of feces were inside the rest yards.
The next day, the county administration went to the breeder for a check. There, 123 dachshunds were treated urgently. In the notes from the inspection, the county administrative board writes that “there was misery”. More than 20 of the dachshunds were in such bad condition that they had to be euthanized.
The police have started a preliminary investigation into serious animal cruelty.
Hear more about the county administration’s handling of the farm and why it took six years between checks in the clip above.
SVT has searched the kennel without an answer.
The County Administrative Board is responsible for supervision
Dog owners are obliged to take care of their dog in accordance with Sweden’s Animal Welfare Act. Anyone who suspects that an animal is in harm’s way should contact the county administrative board, which is responsible for supervision and carries out animal welfare checks. The authority can decide on injunctions, prohibitions, care of the dogs.
Source: County Administrative Board