Shawano County authorities are investigating allegations of animal cruelty at a town of Belle Plaine fur farm.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals contacted the sheriff’s department last month claiming minks were being abused at the Dillenburg Fur Farm, N2544 Hickory Lane.
PETA released a video that, according to a news release from the group, “shows that workers grabbed terrified, screaming minks by their sensitive tails and stuffed as many as 30 of them at a time into a metal drum with carbon monoxide crudely pumped in by a running engine in order to gas them to death.”
The group states one mink survived the gassing and had its neck broken by the farmer, while another survived the gassing for more than 20 minutes before finally dying.
PETA also claims that “approximately 2,500 minks and 100 foxes were kept in rows of filthy, wire-floored cages above foot-high piles of their own waste until they were slaughtered.”
The group said the minks were also sprayed in their cages by a high-pressure washer.
Dan Paden, associate director of evidence analysis for PETA, said the video was shot from late September to mid December by a PETA operative who had gotten a part-time job at the fur farm.
Paden said PETA was interested in taking “a fresh look” at the fur trade and saw that the Dillenburg farm had posted a job opening on Facebook.
The undercover employee had no specific job title, Paden said, but his duties included feeding the animals, ensuring that they had water, cleaning up manure and general maintenance.
Sheriff’s Capt. Tom Tuma said the department received correspondence from PETA on Dec. 21 and has been steadily investigating the matter since then.
“Extensive work has been done on this,” Tuma said. “This has received a lot of attention.”
Tuma said a sheriff’s detective and a deputy trained in assessing animal cruelty allegations have been working on the case.
He said there has also been contact with experts from the state Veterinarian’s Office at the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
“That dialogue continues,” Tuma said.
Tuma said he could not comment on details of the ongoing investigation, but said the department was thoroughly probing the allegations.
“We take all of these things seriously,” he said.
Tuma said the department would review the information gathered and consider the recommendations of the state experts before determining what course of action to take. He said that would happen soon but could not be more specific.
Farm owner Leo Dillenburg declined to comment on the matter.
Michael Whelan, executive director of Fur Commission USA, a not-for-profit industry association representing U.S. mink farmers, said he would wait for authorities to investigate the matter but was skeptical of PETA’s claims.
“They’re PETA,” he said. “They make a lot of these claims, and all animal agriculture is targeted.”
Whelan said PETA is pushing an agenda that opposes any use of animals for any purpose, including dairy, poultry and cattle production, pet ownership and medical research.
“We’re used to them shouting from the rooftops,” Whelan said.
Whelan said he has seen the PETA video from the Dillenburg farm.
“There’s nothing on there that I would call ‘horrendous,’” he said.
Whelan said there is also a likelihood that some of the video was staged.
“That’s something we’ll bring up with investigators,” he said.
Whelan said the fur commission runs a certification program that ensures humane treatment of animals and that farmers and ranchers are required to abide by those guidelines.
The Dillenburg family farm, which has been in operation since the 1960s, according to Whelan, is re-certified under that program every three years and has passed all inspections. He said the farm also gets regular visits from veterinarians.
Whelan also said farmers and ranchers know better than to abuse their animals because that abuse shows up in the quality of the fur.
According to the fur commission, Wisconsin is the number one producer of furs in the country, with 1.5 million pelts produced annually.
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