The animal rights group PETA is calling for regulations for animal rescue organizations in the wake of the arrest of a Polk County couple on animal abuse and neglect charges.

  • PETA wants regulations for animal rescue organizations
  • Owners of Polk City's Darlynn’s Darlins arrested Tuesday
  • They are accused of animal neglect and abuse  

The couple who ran Darlynn’s Darlins is accused of not properly feeding more than a hundred animals and taking care of their medical needs. The Sheriff’s Office seized the animals after an undercover investigation by PETA.

Polk animal control, which is run by the Sheriff’s Office, had not had formal contact with the rescue in the past.

"Animal control had never received a complaint from this particular group,” Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Carrie Eleazer Horstman said.

Animal control never had a reason to visit Darlynn’s Darlins before, because there aren’t local or state regulations that require licenses or inspections.

"The lack of a program like that is what lets something like Darlynn's Darlins go on for years,” said Dan Paden with PETA.

Paden said many animal rescue facilities start out with good intentions but then the operators take in too many animals, they get overwhelmed and then the animals suffer. Paden contends that animal rescue organizations should welcome some form of government oversight with annual fees to pay for inspections.

"It's not much money, and if you have any number of animals, you ought to be able to pay for that. You ought to support the public and the government knowing what you are doing with and for those animals,” Paden said.

With no real regulations now, the Sheriff’s Office hopes for the public’s help to make sure animals are being taken care of properly.

"We do rely a lot on the community to be our eyes and ears. We rely on complaints from citizens, and we do go out and inspect,” Horstman said.

Darlynn’s Darlins accepted donations from the public. PETA said people should only donate to an animal rescue if they have visited the facility and can verify its animals are treated well.