By JEFF MORRIS//
SPCA Westchester announced July 18 that its Humane Law Enforcement Unit arrested Penny Berk of Bedford and charged her with five counts of animal cruelty.
According to SPCA, on Oct. 3, 2023, several witnesses alerted organization officials to “a dire situation” regarding four sick Bernese mountain dog puppies who were being denied proper medical care at Rescue Right, an animal rescue organization co-located with Northwind Kennels on Route 22, Bedford. Berk is an owner of both Rescue Right and Northwind.
None of the animals survived.
SPCA’s enforcement unit is under the direction of Ernest Lungaro. On Oct. 4, Lungaro, along with the SPCA’s medical director, staff veterinary technician and a New York State Health Department official, visited the location and discovered that all four puppies and their mother, Annabelle, were suffering and in critical condition. One of the puppies could barely breathe and was nonresponsive, according to SPCA.
SPCA said officials immediately rushed Annabelle and the puppies to a private veterinary hospital, where all five were diagnosed with distemper virus, a potentially deadly illness that is preventable with proper vaccinations and timely medical care.
On arrival, SPCA staff determined that one of the puppies was so ill that it could not be saved and was humanely euthanized at the scene. Over the next six days, despite round-the-clock veterinary care and treatment, the remaining four littermates and their mother also were euthanized to prevent further suffering, the organization stated.
Annabelle originated from an Amish puppy mill in Pennsylvania, SPCA said. She was brought to Rescue Right along with an unneutered male Bernese mountain dog. Sometime after their arrival at Northwind Kennels/Rescue Right, according to SPCA, the unneutered male was co-kenneled with Annabelle, who was unspayed and subsequently impregnated.
In an interview with The Recorder, Lungaro said the investigation has been ongoing since October. As to why an arrest was made now, nine months into the investigation, he said the decision was made to move forward with an arrest in consultation with the Westchester County District Attorney’s office, but did not offer any specifics as to why that decision was made. Berk was arraigned in Bedford Town Court. Her next court appearance is set for Aug. 28.
Rescue Right is a nonprofit that operates within Northwind Kennels, a business founded in the 1920s which was bought by Berk and her husband, Dr. George Berk, in 2006. In late 2021, Berk was the focus of a GoFundMe effort to raise money to pay back taxes for Northwind, which by then had fallen seriously into arrears and was facing eviction. That crisis was averted when arrangements were made to have donors keep afloat both the business and nonprofit.
SPCA urges anyone who witnesses or suspects an animal is being abused or neglected to call the organization’s Cruelty Hotline at 914-941-7797.