More than 1,100 chinchillas have been surrendered from R & R Chinchilla Inc., a breeding facility near Jenera in Hancock County, after the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio endorsed a consent decree on Monday, November 2, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice. The decree covers more than 300 remaining chinchillas, following the earlier surrender of roughly 800 more under a modified temporary restraining order.
Humane World for Animals, formerly the Humane Society of the United States, said in a release distributed by PR Newswire that it completed its part of the rescue on Tuesday, November 3. Its responders first entered the facility on October 13 and removed 642 chinchillas over two days, then returned November 3 for the remaining 309 — 951 in total — taking them to an undisclosed location for care and veterinary exams.
The Justice Department said the case began after the U.S. Department of Agriculture referred concerns that animals were in serious danger, and it filed a complaint in August against the company and its president, James F. Ritterspach. The complaint alleged repeated failures to meet the Animal Welfare Act’s standards for about 1,100 chinchillas at the facility, which has bred chinchillas for over 40 years near Jenera, south of Findlay, according to The Canton Repository.
The Justice Department said USDA conducted 18 inspections since September 2022 and identified 59 violations in four years, documenting untreated medical conditions and excessive fecal accumulation. Deputy Administrator Bernadette Juarez of USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said in the release that inspectors also found about 800 additional chinchillas concealed in a second structure withheld from inspection for years.
Humane World for Animals said in its release that exams of the animals it removed found severely matted fur, inflamed skin, overgrown teeth, scabs, sores and urine scalding, and that a number were missing limbs, toes or ears. Those details come from the rescue organization, which the Justice Department asked to assist.
"Animal breeders and caretakers that are federally licensed have an obligation to comply with basic standards Congress established to provide clean water, adequate food and housing, and sufficient veterinary care," Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson said in the Justice Department release. Laura Koivula of Humane World for Animals said in that organization’s release that it was rewarding to see the chinchillas enjoy their first dust baths in its care.
Under the decree, the Justice Department said, Ritterspach agreed to relinquish the remaining chinchillas and permanently cease any further Animal Welfare Act-regulated activity, and a separate USDA order permanently revokes his license. Humane World for Animals said it is working with shelter and rescue partners on placement, and urged families ready for a chinchilla’s lifelong needs to adopt from shelters or rescues.
For Hancock County, the case closes a long-running operation near Jenera, while caring for more than a thousand small animals is only beginning for the organizations that took them in. The Justice Department said animal welfare violations can be reported through USDA’s website.