Allegations of animal abuse and neglect against

Allegations of animal abuse and neglect against Lawrence
Moran at Total Dogs Ltd, Netherton UK.
1. Death of Alfie
Alfie a 3 year old male Yorkshire Terrier went into the care of Moran on 5th
March 2014 for behavioural work. Moran had contacted Alfie’s owner on 11 th
March to say that he had ran away at Crosby beach during walk. Despite
several searches in the area Alfie was never seen again. He was originally
adopted from Freshfields Animal Rescue and was microchipped. In light of the
recent allegations an ex-employee claimed that around the same time as
Alfie’s disappearance, a small dog matching his description was placed in a
kennel with a lead attached to his neck. The dogs in the next kennel
apparently tugged on the lead and strangled this dog (believed to be Alfie) to
death. Moran has since admitted that Alfie died, but will not give any further
information regarding this. Alfie’s body has never been found.
2. Death of Gizmo
Gizmo, a 10 year old male Shih Tzu went into the care of Moran on 23 rd July
2015. On 19th August Moran had contacted Gizmo’s owner to say that he had
ran away on Crosby beach during a walk. Gizmo’s family spent 5 weeks
searching for him and were in contact with Moran throughout the search. See
below photos of messages exchanged between Moran and Gizmo’s family
during the search. When staff at Freshfields Animal Rescue heard about
Gizmo, and the circumstances in which he vanished (while on the beach in
the care of the same dog trainer as Alfie) concerns were raised. A member of
Staff contacted Gizmo’s family to tell them of Alfie’s story and they both
agreed that things did not seem to add up. During this time Gizmo’s family
received an anonymous phone call from a girl who claimed to be close friends
with a colleague of Moran’s. She had claimed that Gizmo did not run off on
the beach and had in fact died at the kennels on 25 th July. She said that
Gizmo had been killed by other dogs during his stay at the kennels. Gizmo’s
family decided to confront Moran in order to find out the truth of what
happened to their dog. At first Moran denied everything but eventually broke
down and admitted that Gizmo did die at the kennels after being attacked by
other dogs. When asked where his body was Moran said ‘I can’t tell you that
as it will be the end of me’. Moran has since told the Police/RSPCA/Press that
he placed Gizmo’s body in a bin. Gizmo’s body has never been found. It has
also been revealed that after Gizmo was attacked (and still alive) Moran’s
kennel staff had placed him in a bath of cold water in an attempt to stop the
bleeding but did not seek veterinary care for him.
3. Death of Finn
Finn, a healthy 3 year old male Chihuahua was in the care of Moran for a
period of 3 weeks from July – August 2015 while his owner was away on
holiday. 3 days before Finn’s owner was due to return she received a phone
call from Moran to say that Finn had died of a heart attack at the kennels.
Before staying with Moran Finn had seen a vet and was given a clean bill of a
health, he had no previous health or heart problems. No veterinary care was
sought for Finn at the time of his death and the cause of his death is still
unknown. When asked where Finn’s body was Moran said that he had sent
Finn to be cremated at a crematorium in Rainford. There are no pet
crematoriums in Rainford and Finn’s owner has contacted all of the other
crematoriums in the area but they have no record of Finn. Finn’s body has
never been found.
4. Examples of barbaric training techniques with use of Prong Collars and
Electric Shock Collars. While these collars are not banned they have been
known to cause suffering and injury towards dogs. Below are photos taken
from the ‘Total Dogs Ltd’ website of dogs clearly wearing these collars. The last
image was provided by a client who was told by Moran to use this Prong Collar
on his puppy Rolo.
5. Burns to dog’s neck - Blue
In 2012 Blue, a male Terrier crossbreed went into Moran’s care for
rehabilitation as he was a very nervous and fearful rescue dog. Blue returned
from Moran’s care with severe wounds to his neck, he was also terrified and
deeply in shock. Moran had told Blue’s owner that he was bitten on the neck
by another dog in the park. When the vet examined Blue it was discovered that
his wounds were consistent with the use of an Electric Shock Collar.
6. Loss of dog’s eye – Jack
In Autumn 2013 Jack, a male Shih Tzu had to have an eye removed after
staying with Moran. When Jack’s owner collected him he was told by Moran
that Jack had just snagged his eye on a branch. Jack did not receive any
veterinary treatment while in Moran’s care. Jack’s owner took him straight to
the vet who confirmed the eye had been very badly damaged and left
untreated for approximately a week resulting in an operation to remove the
eye.
7. Neighbour’s complaints to Sefton Council
Moran’s neighbour had contacted Sefton Council in July 2015 to complain
about the strong smell of burning trees coming from Moran’s property. The
neighbour was concerned that the trees and poles he was burning were
releasing poisonous gases. She had also complained on several occasions
about the noise coming from the kennels at Moran’s property. Between 17 th
and 21st August 2015 she heard what she believed to be a dog being mauled
by other dogs. She also recorded several short videos on her phone of dogs
crying, barking and sounding in distress. Between October – December 2014
she witnessed a member of staff punching and kicking a black dog in the face.
She had also heard a female member of staff shouting at the dogs and the
sound of a metal bar being banged against the kennels. On another occasion
she had seen a Dalmatian persistently trying to mate with a small black dog
that was in distress and trying to get away but none of the staff came to help.
8. Poor living conditions of dogs
An ex employee took photos of the poor conditions that the dogs lived in. The
first photos shows a very large number of dogs all sleeping in the same room
of a night with only 4 small plastic beds and a tray of shallow, dirty drinking
water. The last photo shows the conditions that the puppies Moran bred and
sold lived in.
9. Sick Puppies and Breeding
Dozens of puppies are being sold by Moran at any given time for hundreds of
pounds. Below is a photo of Buddy, a French Bulldog puppy who was sold by
Lawrence Moran for £800 in February 2014. Buddy was poorly bred and only
survived for a few months before dying in his owners arms. Moran had
advertised Buddy’s litter for sale on the Pets4Homes website. When Buddy’s
owner contacted Pets4Homes they said that Moran placed a large number of
adverts on their website selling puppies. It was later revealed by The Kennel
Club that Buddy was never legally this person’s as someone else’s name was
on his Kennel Club registration documents.
10. Video showing multiple dogs kennelled together
Bichon Frise Rocky went to stay with Moran for a period of 2 and a half weeks
for behaviour work. Moran would not allow Rocky’s owner to visit while he was
there and so she kept asking for a photo or video of him. On 30th March 2015
Rocky’s owner was sent a video from Moran of Rocky showing him kennelled
with a large number of dogs of all breeds and sizes. Dogs are clearly seen
cowering fearfully in this video. Moran had used a prong collar on Rocky even
though the owner had stated that she did not want one used. Since staying
with Moran Rocky has become fearful of people, especially men and also
plastic bags.
11. Injuries to dog’s paws - Kaiser
In March 2014 Kaiser, a male Doberman spent 2 weeks in Moran’s care.
Kaiser returned from Moran’s care with various injuries including severe
damage to his paws and was not treated by a vet while with Moran. He had to
undergo several painful operations.
12. Injuries to dog’s face – Haze
Haze stayed with Moran at his boarding kennels for 8 days during December
2014-January 2015. When Haze’s owner picked him up he noticed that the
dog’s whole face was swollen with two ‘bruise like’ marks that were open and
bleeding. When asked what had happened Moran said Haze must have had
an allergic reaction. A few hours after being collected by his owner Haze was
experiencing breathing difficulties so he was taken to the vet. The vet said
Haze’s injuries were caused by a muzzle that had been left on for 6-8 days too
tight. Haze also had cuts on his legs, which the vet believed were caused by
sleeping on concrete. In addition to this Haze also had cuts around his neck
that the vet believed were consistent with the use of a prong collar. Haze had
to return to the vet several times as his face got infected and he took about 4-5
weeks to make a full recovery. Haze still has two large black scars down the
side of his face.
13. Dog returns with pressure sores and scars – Alfie
Alfie went to stay with Lawrence Moran in December 2015 for just under three
weeks for training. He had been previously in October with her other dog while
his owner went on holiday. It was after this stay that Lawrence said he would
like to do some ‘behavioural’ work with Alfie as he felt he had separation
anxiety. The owner took his advice and let Alfie go for training. He returned in a
terrible state. He had lost weight and had pressure sores and scars all over his
body.
14. Dog returns with weight loss and bite marks – Louie
Louie stayed with Moran for a period of 3 weeks around 16th July 2012 for
behavioural work. He returned for 4 weeks around 21st October 2012. Louie
returned from Moran’s care covered in bite marks and was also very skinny.
Moran said Louie got into a fight at the kennels but did not seek veterinary
care for him.
15. Dog contracts mange – Cookie
Cookie stayed with Moran from 8th – 18th August 2015. Cookie returned with
horrendous rashes and was taken straight to vets who confirmed the dog had
contracted mange. This photo was taken 3 weeks after Cookie started
treatment.
16. Dog returns with puncture wounds – Mac
Mac, a Labrador returned from Moran’s care with puncture wounds to his neck
and ear.
17. Dog returns with weight loss, vomiting and diarrhoa
German Shepherd spent 2 weeks with Moran upon the return to his owner the
dog had lost 11kg and could barely stand. He had vomiting and diarrhoea and
was very fearful.
18. Dog returns with scars from muzzle being tied shut
A German Shepherd returned from Moran’s care with scars to his nose and
chin. Moran told the owner that the dog had tried to escape and injured himself
in the process, although the scars looked consistent with the dog’s muzzle
being tied shut. The dog’s owner also worked for Moran for a few weeks and
has stated that Moran falsely uses one cheaper dog food brand and tells
owners it is an expensive premium product.
19. Volunteer expresses concern and is told to leave
This person worked for Moran in July 2015 and was thrown out after raising
serious concerns of deception to customers, filthy kennels, lack of care and
walking etc.
‘I worked in these kennels for under two weeks - I am a student and wanted
work experience in industry over the summer. I had already volunteered in a
farm, a dog creche and had a year of education but wanted to learn more. I
raised concerns from the off - lack of (experienced) staff, lack of exercise, lack
of cleanliness - at first I thought he had maybe just taken on too much and that
he genuinely cared about the animals. I was told it was my job to look after the
place and keep an eye on a member of staff who was known to hit the dogs. I
brought in new routines, made sure no more lies were told to customers about
off site walks on my shift (they never happened) but could not change things
alone. After bringing up issues with Lawrence, unable to handle the situation
and my critique, he threw me out and told me I wasn't wanted any more. I
viewed him stealing customers food for his own dogs, shouting badly at the
dogs, he encouraged me to use a flip flop to silence the dogs but I said I
wouldn't ever, heard him bad mouth neighbours, customers and dogs. I have
been traumatised by working with this man who was supposed to give me the
tools I needed for growth and confidence. I felt threatened by him and I know
this is how he made other people feel (witnesses, staff). I have mental health
issues, which he knew about (anxiety but under control) and looking back, I
feel he employed some vulnerable people, so he could get away with neglect.
I did not witness any physical abuse (maybe because he knew I would not
tolerate it) - but this man not only bullied animals but people too.’
20. Dog’s return with physical and emotional trauma, resulting in the
premature death of one
‘My two Chihuahuas and my Miniature Dachshund stayed with Lawrence
Moran for 2 weeks in 2013, they had a massive bag of food that usually lasted
them a month. When I went to pick my boys up they were over shadowed by a
huge Dogue De Bordeaux and were petrified. They had all lost a large amount
of weight and the bag of food I left with them was barely touched. All three
dogs also stank of stale urine. Since their stay with Lawrence Moran my two
Chihuahuas now have eating disorders, and growl every time they are fed. I
have had them for 9 years and they have never done this before. My poor
Miniature Dachshund Dudley lost his life at 1 years of age due to the stress
which I believe Lawrence caused. Dudley was 6 months old when he stayed
with Lawrence Moran. He was a happy well socialised puppy, however when
he returned to me he became extremely aggressive towards dogs and people.
He was petrified. I took him to a well-known trainer in Rainford who helped me
try and get him right, and had also helped to fix other dogs that Lawrence had
turned aggressive. Unfortunately Dudley attacked one of my dogs and it wasn't
safe for him to be in the house with a family and a baby. We took the decision
to rehome him to a person who had years of experience training aggressive
dogs. Dudley died before his 2nd birthday due to a low immune system and
stress can lower a dog’s immune system. As far as I am aware Lawrence
Moran did not physically abuse Dudley but he mentally abused him and
caused him physical harm. I believe what Lawrence did contributed to my
beautiful boy’s death. I have informed the relevant authorities and made a
statement. At the time it happened it was just speculation I never thought he
would abuse animals in such a way that ultimately lead to their death. I'm sorry
to the families who have gone through the heartbreak we have gone through
at the hands of Lawrence.’
21. Dog is apparently rehomed without a trace – Lady
In 2013 a lady called Sharon turned to Lawrence Moran at Total Dogs Ltd Liverpool for help with
her auntie's dog. She was a black and white Springer Spaniel called Lady. Moran took Lady for
'rehab' and returned her 6 weeks later telling the owner that she was now a great dog, however
just two weeks later Lady bit her owner quite badly. Family members advised her to have the dog
put to sleep but Sharon believed that Lady deserved a chance as most of her behaviour
problems had stemmed from the owner. Desperate for help the family contacted Moran again.
Moran offered to take Lady and rehome her but advised that she would need to have a shock
collar. Although Lady's owner was worried by this she had become scared of Lady and desperate
for help she let Moran take her. The family were told that Lady was rehomed to a lady with a
blind Springer Spaniel. Lady's family have never had any updates from this home and would love
to know where she is and how she is doing. Could she be another missing dog?
22. Dog spends one night and returns traumatised - Joey
23. Dogs return with cuts, diarrhoea and behavioural issues – Margo and
Daphne
‘I booked my two 18 month old puppies in for two nights on the 1st June 2015. When
I arrived about 4.30 there were quite a few dogs in the yard and Lawrence explained
that they were really busy as it was pick up time for the day boarders. He said my
two would be held in a small holding kennel opposite the reception area, until
someone was free to take them to their longer stay kennel. The owners picking up
their dogs seemed happy and I had no reason not to believe him. I filled in a form
with contact details etc and left a bag containing our contact details, food, dog toys,
a dog blanket and an old cardigan of mine with a lad in reception. Fortunately, the
meeting in Derby finished a day early and we decided to pick them up, unannounced
on the way home. We were asked by the same lad who had booked them in to wait
in reception while he went and got them. My husband followed him into an inner yard
and he let my two puppies out of what looked like a small wooden tool shed. They
were totally unresponsive. No waggy tails, no bouncing up and down, no puppy
kisses as would be usual even if I had popped the shop for half an hour. They
smelled disgusting like they had slept in urine. Their coats were filthy and had a film
of greasy dirt. All we kept asking was what has happened to them, but the lad said
they were just tired as they had been running round in the exercise area with the
other dogs. He reduced the fee to £25. I had specifically said they were not to mix as
Daphne (pug cross) is totally subservient and Margo (shih tzu cross) is protective of
her and nervous with strange dogs. The bag we left containing their food toys etc
was still in reception with piles of others. It was untouched and the lad said he
couldn't remember it being left. When we got them home, they drank a whole bowl of
water, but wouldn't eat. We bathed them and they slept for 12 hours straight. The
next day while rubbing Daphne's head I could feel small cuts that had started to scab
over and there was a longer cut to her underside. Both had diarrhoea and were
lethargic for days. Margo couldn't stop scratching. It was constant. I took her the vet
who thought it might be fleas although they were up to date with treatment and
Daphne wasn't scratching. Another dose of flea treatment didn't stop it so she was
given steroids in case it was grass allergy. Both dogs were overly nervous and jumpy
for weeks, off their food and had upset tummies. The vet thought it maybe a
symptom of stress. I had Googled Total Kennels before leaving my dogs and could
find nothing negative on there, I still didn't equate everything with their stay at Total,
it is only since hearing of cases on social media it has all fallen into place. This is
Daphne's belly 4 months after she stayed at Total, as you can see she now has a
large scar.’
24. Abusive attitude from Moran when refused training
‘In 2012 I bought a deal off Groupon for Lawrence to come to my house and see my
dog. She's a small Bichon Frise who is really nervous and can be a bit snappy.
Lawrence didn't show up for the first appointment so this had to be rearranged.
When Lawrence did come to see my dog the first thing he did was put a chain lead
on her (I have no idea why a lead was even involved) He then finally got her up on
the couch after she kept running to me terrified. He proceeded to pin her on her back
to the couch which resulted in her biting him. He had a tiny cut on his finger and if
someone pinned me down like that I’d do the same as she done. He then said she
had to go and stay with him for 11 days for ‘intense training’ which was very
expensive. After thinking about it I decided I couldn't let her go so I rang him up to
explain. He became very argumentative and told me to think about it again. I did
think about it again and rang him back to tell him no way could she go for 11 days as
she is my baby and I’d be worried sick. I suggested maybe she could go some days
while I was in work and I could pick her up after work. I rang him twice and he
fobbed me off both times. It seemed to me like he just wanted a lot of money and
after watching him pin my dog down like that whose already really nervous around
strangers I'm glad she never went as she's fine just how she is. After all this I left a
negative review on Facebook to receive a lot of abuse via inbox with him then
blocking and deleting me.’
25.
26.
27. Original breeder of Moran’s Malamutes expresses concern
The original breeder is very concerned for the whereabouts of Moran’s Malamute
dogs and had an agreement with him not to breed from her dog/s.
28.
Buster a male Shih Tzu was left for 4 days - when family went to pick him up they
were shocked. Dog had cloudy eyes, didn't greet them as looked distressed, had
rash and piece of his nose missing. Moran stated he had tried to escape through
fence. Dog is still distressed 3 weeks later, will hardly eat and is distressed and
subdued.
29. Dog returns home very sick and traumatised- Cassie
‘My beagle puppy Cassie went to stay with Lawrence in August 2015 for 3 nights.
When we picked her up she had lost weight and was struggling to walk properly.
When we got her home she was vomiting. Also her paw was infected and she did
not bark or make any noise for over a week. After several trips to the vets and over
£150 later she was finally on the mend. She had an anti-sickness jab, painkiller
injection and a course of antibiotics. Lawrence couldn't offer any explanation of what
happened. I phoned and emailed him loads and he didn't get back to me. When I
was enquiring about his kennels before Cassie went in there he sent me the
following message.....
‘We aren't like normall kennels all of our dogs are exercised 2 times a day at crosby
beach/sanddunes formby beach/pinewoods
‘We only have upto 5 dogs at a time so its a lot more relaxed and the dogs get
lots of 1-2-1 attention we have 4 staff too as i have show dogs that require lots
of exercise too all dogs are walked 2 times a day at least.
How are your dog(s) around others? If possible we exersise the dogs together
so its more fun for them. Some people prefare the dogs to be exercised
individually we can cater for both
We charge £20 a day that includes everything food ect
We have a play area with hills and tunnels that the dogs love, theres loads of
pictures on our Facebook page Total dog training
We always welcome people to view and bring the dog before hand if possible
and we normally take a deposit
Cheers Lawrence
Www.Totaldogs.co.uk’
This email claims that the maximum dogs kennelled at any one time are 5 but
previous posts (including the video in post number 10) show that this is not true.
30. Dogs return covered in urine, one lived outside with no shelter – Romeo
and Mei-Mei
‘In April 2013 I bought a voucher from Groupon for a dog behavioural home visit
assessment. Lawrence Moran from Total Dogs came to my house, the issues we
had with our dog Romeo was barking, toilet training and him and my other dog MeiMei were just not listening to us. Lawrence suggested he have them for a couple of
weeks, and it just happened that we were going on a family holiday in May 2013 so
he said he would take them for 14 days for a cost of £500.00. We gave him a 12kg
bag of James Wellbeloved dog food about £50.00 worth of dog treat, toys, blankets
and a t shirt that we had been wearing for a couple of days. Our two dogs are small
cross Bichon Frise / Toy Poodles. Mei-Mei the female was 2 years old at the time
and Romeo would of been around 16 months old. When we dropped them off
around the 6th May (the night before we went away) he said both dogs would live
inside his house in the extension. He said he would Skype with us every day and
send pictures just for our piece of mind. We received no Skype calls or pictures. We
managed to get in touch one evening and Moran said they were both happy, no
problems and were just upset the first couple of days. After that we had no further
contact as Moran would never answer my calls. We came home and got a call the
same day asking for them to be picked up. They had been there for 12 days. When
we arrived Moran said the training was successful, he told us to ignore them when
we greeted them. Mei-Mei looked really thin and smelt of urine, her eyes were
weeping. She has a white strip of fur from her under her mouth right down to her
belly that had turned yellow, I guess from sleeping in her own urine. Moran then
pointed out that my dogs had been living in outdoor kennels which were full of urine.
I asked him why they hadn't stayed indoors like he said and he couldn't answer me
and changed the subject. When I went to see Romeo he came running out of a
corner of the garden where Moran said he had been living and staying the whole
time. In the corner of the fence were Romeo had been living was a old rusty bike
and as it had been raining while we was away Romeo’s fur had turned a orange
colour with the rust. He was also very thin. It took months to get Romeo back to his
normal colour and he too smelt of urine. Moran told me they ate the full 12 kg bag of
food and all the treats which I found hard to believe as there was no way could have
gone through all that. It took months for the smell from both dogs to go with endless
grooming and baths. Mei-Mei was vomiting and had diarrhoea for a few days. I
spoke to Lawrence a couple of days later he said she just had a upset stomach with
the sudden change. Both dogs where very unsettled for weeks especially Romeo
and up to this day he now seems scared of men and only has to hear raised voices
and runs and hides . I tried to call Lawrence he ignored all calls text messages and
emails so I gave up in the end.’