ohmidog!

After a candelight vigil for the 80 dogs shot and killed by two kennel-owning Amish brothers, one of the brothers approached the lingering crowd, Tina Evangelista-Eppenstein, an animal advocate, reports on a blog for the Reading Eagle.

Elmer Zimmerman explained that he was told shooting the dogs was legal and said he had been advised to do so by his veterinarian.

He also said he regretted the choice, but it was unclear to Evangelista-Epperstein if it was the act or the publicity it led to that Zimmerman lamented.

You can read her full report and see more of her photos of the event here.

The dogs were shot by the two puppy mill owners after a state inspection resulted in an order that they provide about 40 dogs with veterinary care.

Dr. Frank Moll, of Hamburg, who had treated Zimmerman’s cattle but not his dogs, said he received a frantic call from him after the inspection. He told him it was legal to shoot animals in Pennsylvania.

“I warned him, though, that it was not the preferred method of disposing of dogs,” Moll told the Reading Eagle. “I told him the Humane Society probably wasn’t going to like it.”

Zimmerman shot all of his animals. Ammon H. Zimmerman Jr., his brother and owner of a breeding operation next door, disposed of 10 dogs the same way even though his kennel had not been inspected July 24. The  brothers surrendered their kennel operator licenses and dismantled the kennels.

Chris L. Ryder, spokesman for the state Department of Agriculture, said all 80 dogs were shot with a .22-caliber rifle and buried in a compost heap on one of the farms near Kutztown.