Probation for woman in animal cruelty case

A woman convicted of keeping 26 dogs in squalid conditions in her motor home and trailer while staying temporarily outside a home in the Evergreen area has been given three years of probation.

Juanita Camille McGranor, 66, was ordered to serve a three-year deferred sentence Thursday during a hearing in Flathead County District Court.

She also was ordered to pay more than $11,000 in restitution and do 100 hours of community service. Additional community service, at minimum wage, could be ordered by her probation officer to pay off the restitution.

McGranor will not be allowed to care for or own any animals while under court supervision.

Pursuant to a plea bargain, McGranor pleaded guilty in September by way of Alford to one count of felony cruelty to animals.

The Alford plea allowed McGranor, who testified briefly at the hearing, to take advantage of a plea bargain while maintaining her innocence.

According to court documents, McGranor - who was on her way from Washington state to Kentucky - stopped at her son's house on Flathead Drive about June 20.

Several days later, a neighbor notified authorities about the possible animal abuse.

The dogs, both purebred huskies and husky mixes, had been confined to McGranor's motor home and the trailer she pulled behind it. Investigators said the floor and surfaces of the trailer, as well as the dogs inside, were covered in droppings and the dogs were sick.

After authorities confiscated McGranor's dogs, two litters were born but three adult dogs died from poor health, bringing the total number of animals being cared for by the county to 39.

Keeping and caring for the dogs at the county animal shelter has cost taxpayers thousands of dollars.

Because McGranor claims the dogs are wolf hybrids, the county cannot adopt the dogs out directly to new owners. Rabies vaccinations don't always work on wolf and coyote hybrids, according to Flathead County Animal Shelter director Kirsten Holland.

Instead, the dogs will be sent to rescue organizations then adopted from there. The animals will not be euthanized.

"They are officially our property now, so we can send them to rescue," Holland said.

Holland said people interested in information about the dogs can keep up to date at http://twitter.com/flatheadhuskies.

McGranor, a former resident of Troy, previously was convicted in Lincoln County of failure to license her dogs, a misdemeanor.

When she was charged in September 2003, McGranor surrendered 15 dogs and three cats to county animal control, according to Lincoln County Justice Court records.

McGranor pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to probation, which she completed in 2006.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com