St. Francis dog trainer and boarder charged with animal mistreatment

A St. Francis dog trainer and boarder has been criminally charged with mistreating several dogs ‘in a cruel manner’. That’s according to the criminal complaint TMJ4 obtained on Friday.

Police reports show the woman ran a business called ‘K-9 Kassidy’ out of her St. Francis home.

Court records show some customers paid thousands of dollars to have her train and board their dogs. Prosecutors say she allegedly beat dogs in her care. Court records show one died and another is still missing.

St. Francis police body camera footage takes us back to late January at the home of Kassidy Ziegel. A witness called police concerned about dogs in her care.

“How many dogs due to you have inside right now?” an officer asked.

“So I have my three, I have two board and trains and then I have his three dogs,” Ziegel replied.

She was taken into custody and a search warrant later found a video on Ziegel’s phone.

Police say it shows Ziegel kicking and screaming at two dogs, including one she was paid to board and train.

Additional cell phone video obtained by police shows another dog bleeding from the mouth with a puncture wound on its neck.

Court documents show two other victims told police that their dogs lost significant weight. One dog allegedly came home with infections and hip injuries.

We showed up at Ziegel’s new home to see if she had anything to say about the allegations. No one answered the door.

All five charges Ziegel faces are Class A misdemeanors. If convicted, each one comes with a fine of up to $10,000 and up to 9 months in jail.

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