RUFFF Timeline
A long running, ongoing battle between Mohave County government and Golden Valley animal sanctuary, RUFFF, finally is reaching a conclusion following a unanimous decision by the Board of Supervisors at its January 3 meeting. All five supervisors voted and passed a motion authorizong staff to begin the implementation of the revocation of the Zoning Use Permit for the RUFFF Facility. Meanwhile, the Western Arizona Humane Society (WAHS) utilizing its contract with Mohave County, has taken control of many of the animals and is making decisions about the health and suitability of adoption for the many dogs and cats now under its domain. This has been a contentious clash of wills and legalities almost from the beginning due to multiple non compliance of code for over 12 years. Mohave County Supervisor Buster Johnson has always been at the forefront on this issue, saying “I’m like most people. I want to see a safe and secure sanctuary for homeless animals. However, almost from the beginning, RUFFF, has consistently violated code, including some basic sanitary necessities. The conditions for the animals have been deplorable and we’ve seen little to no improvement year after year.” Johnson then added, “I’ve warned repeatedly that RUFFF needed to meet county guidelines and work to meet minimal standards. The court has over ruled the county on issues of health and safety issues in the past. That along with misguided support from the outside got us to the position where animals were so neglected that they had to be euthanized ” Supervisor Johnson blamed RUFFF owner Hillarie Allison for much of the problem. Johnson believes “she may have initially wanted to help these animals because many of them were in dire straits, but, she repeatedly neglected to properly care for them. It’s been a struggle, but, finally, all four of the other supervisors agreed with me at our January 3rdmeeting that her licensed needs to be revoked.” See this detailed Timeline below to further understand the many multiple failed opportunities RUFFF had over many years to come into compliance. Supervisor Johnson concludes “RUFFF simply didn’t work with the county to provide safe and sanitary conditions for the animals. It is responsible for its own demise.” Hillarie Allison opened an animal shelter in 2000 in Bullhead City. She moved to Golden Valley in 2003. The first Zoning Use Permit (ZUP) for an animal rescue and sanctuary for this property was conditionally approved by the Mohave County Board of Supervisors on July 7, 2003, via BOS Resolution No. 2003 -229. It was extended for the first time with BOS Resolution No. 2004 -234A dated July 6, 2004. The request for extension indicated that the applicant had not been able to take possession of the property until the latter half of February (2004), and that the project was being redesigned and the dog runs had to be relocated due to an issue with property markers. The only conditions contained in this resolution were that the applicant must comply with the conditions of BOS Resolution 2003 … Continue Reading →