NORTHAMPTON — The barn inspection last month at a Florence Road farm that led to the seizure of more than 400 roosters and hens believed to have been bred for cockfighting was the first by a local inspector in the property’s history, according to city records.
Northampton Police Capt. John Cartledge said prior to this year, 1095 Florence Road had not been on the city’s barn inspection list and that the May 24 inspection was for the year 2017. The property was added to the barn inspection list after the police department’s animal inspector, Shayla Howe, determined it should be on the list. Howe had driven past the property and used Google maps to make the determination, Cartledge said.
The 423 birds seized at the property, which is also home to Ravenwold Greenhouses, were taken by the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to the MSPCA-Nevins Farm in Methuen late last month. More than 100 roosters deemed too aggressive for rehabilitation were quickly euthanized by the MSPCA, according to director of adoptions Mike Keiley.
Police continue to investigate what animal welfare officials described as the biggest cockfighting operation in the state’s history. No criminal charges have been filed.
Northampton police descended on the property after Howe discovered signs of cockfighting — an unusually large number of roosters, “boxing gloves” that are placed over a rooster’s spur during training and a bag of medication and needles common to cockfighting — during the May 24 barn inspection, according to police.
Police declined to provide the barn inspection record to the Gazette, citing the ongoing investigation.
Howe joined the department as a full-time animal inspector and animal control officer in July 2015. Prior to that time, the department had a contracted dog officer and the animal inspector job fell under the purview of the city’s Board of Health.
The city’s health department has no records for 1095 Florence Road, Melissa Roberts-Cote, permit clerk and administrative support for the city’s Department of Health, wrote in an email to the Gazette.
Roberts-Cote wrote that it is the responsibility of the animal control officer or animal inspector to send the records to the state and keep a barn book of the inspections done. She noted that when the city created the full-time animal control officer and inspector position, the police department took over all of the barn books and inspections.
At MSPCA-Nevins Farm in Methuen, Keiley said Wednesday that of the 423 birds seized, 117 adult roosters, 124 hens and 54 chicks remain at the farm. The other 128 birds have been euthanized.
He said a court awarded the organization forfeiture of the animals, which allows the group to place the birds in sanctuaries or with known adopters who could handle the responsibility once the birds undergo testing.
Keiley said roosters, even those not bred for fighting, are the hardest to rehome, and that many sanctuaries the organization has contacted are not prepared to take adult roosters.
The organization and many like it struggle to find homes that will to take roosters, Keiley said. He said the MSPCA has heard from people urging them to find homes for the roosters rather than euthanize them.
“The general feeling in animal welfare is that the goal is to take animals from bad situations, and give them permanent loving solutions. It’s what we generally strive for in every situation,” he said. “I think if people put into perspective the idea of being able to offer a humane death and compassionate care — that is a success.”
All of the 124 hens are expected to be placed either in sanctuary or adopted, unless the organization finds medical issues, Keiley said. He added that the group is hoping for a similar adoption or sanctuary rate for the 54 chicks.
“The hope here is we can make the best-case scenario out of a really bad situation,” he said. “It’s a difficult case for staff and volunteers. We wish we had the opportunity and the reality that we could turn the animals around completely but with the sheer numbers, that is not a realistic outcome.”
Emily Cutts can be reached at ecutts@gazettenet.com.