On Sunday, September 3, 2023, officers with Gilpin County Sheriff responded to calls from a gentleman who had grown concerned about dogs that had been left at a boarding facility in Coal Creek Canyon. The caller’s girlfriend had asked him to pick up her dogs at the facility after she grew concerned about them.

The caller alleged that the facility was operating unlicensed. The Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office responded to the call with the assistance of Jefferson County Animal Control. Upon arrival, Gilpin County deputies observed six dogs outside in an open kennel with no one in attendance. The outside dogs were observed to be lacking access to water or food.

After obtaining a search warrant, Gilpin County deputies entered the premises to find an additional seven dogs inside the residence, in kennels. None of the seven dogs in the indoor kennels were observed to have access to water or food, either.

With the assistance of Jefferson County Animal Control, all dogs were removed from the premises for their safety, until their owners could be identified and contacted. All but two of the dogs were able to be reunited with their owners at the boarding facility. Officers believe the dogs had been without food or water for close to twenty-four hours. The Gilpin County case is under investigation and charges are pending.

Colorado law requires that any person or firm operating a pet animal facility or business that engages in selling, transferring, adopting, breeding, boarding, training, grooming, sheltering, rescuing, or transporting pet animals may need to be licensed under PACFA (Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act), regulated by the Colorado Department of Agriculture.

Gilpin County Sheriff’s Public Relations Officer, Cherokee Blake, was asked what they would like the general public to take away from this incident. She said, “People should verify that the business is reputable, before leaving their dogs in their care. Law enforcement and Foothills Animal Shelter really worked well together to help these dogs out of their situation and reunite them with their owners. We really appreciate each other.”

According to the Executive Director of Foothills Animal Shelter Connie Howard, two of the dogs are still awaiting reclamation by their original owners at its facility. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has issued a summons for its case against the owner of the boarding facility for abandonment after at least one of the dogs was found in a park in Arvada.

For the chocolate Labrador and German Shepherd still awaiting reunion with their owners, a happy ending still awaits.