This is one of the dogs abandoned at Shepherd’s Way Animal Rescue. Photo credit withheld
Several people have confirmed that the founders of Shepherd’s Way Animal Rescue in Springdale, WA exposed by Seattle DogSpot two years ago have abandoned their rental property and disappeared.
Alan and Carrie Aenk left behind over 20 horses and 4 dogs. A neighbor who the Aenks asked to feed the animals for a week while they traveled contacted the Steven’s County Sheriff’s office when they failed to return.
Last week the Independent reported “the Aenks were on the brink of being evicted for not paying rent at the property.”
The article also noted that a legal ad in the Spokane Exchange…advised the couple they faced eviction if they did not pay the $3,600 they owed in rent by Oct. 1,
During a conversation with the neighbor he told me he thought the Aenks left in a hurry because they left keys, glasses, clothes and other items scattered around the house. He also said the Aenks left the animals “in squalor.”
Officials euthanized one of the abandoned horses due to a severe foot injury. Photo credit withheld.
Rough Start Horse Rescue took in the horses. I haven’t been able who took the dogs.
KREM reported that one of the horses had to be put down due to a severe injury to her foot and leg.
I’m not surprised that the Aenks abandoned their animals because they were grifters who used the rescue to make money.
I first heard of the Aenks and Shepherd’s Way Animal Rescue in the summer of 2015 when wildfires were burning all over eastern Washington. They set up a fake fundraiser to raise $10,000 for sanctuary/tent city they claimed to have set up for families displaced by the fires.
They also claimed their property was “the official command center for volunteer fire fighters. We need prayer and finances for food to feed the 150 firefighters that will be here.”
However, the picture showing the “tent city” they supposedly set up was a stock photo from California someone took last year. The other photos of the fire were also stock photos of a California fire.
And the Chief for Stevens County Fire District 1, wrote:
Shepherd’s Way claims it gave dozens of families displaced by the fires a “sanctuary” where they can stay. However, this picture on their fundraising plea is of people who fled from a wildfire in California last September. Photo from desertnews.com.
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“A majority of these claims were false and the matter was turned over to the Stevens County Sheriff’s office for further investigation. There was never a tent city nor was there ever an “official” command post at this location (very rarely will a post be set up on private property). The command post has always operated from the Fruitland Bible Camp and for a short while (2 days) there was a secondary site running out of the Springdale Fire Station (our Station 7). The fire did remain far from this location, which has difficult access to it (we had a fire up there last year).”
The fake fundraiser was pulled from youcaring.com a couple of days after it was exposed.
Another Shepherd’s Way scam was the Aenk’s claim that they rescued and adopted out military dogs due to be euthanized:
Carrie Aenk claimed that Shepherd’s Way adopted out 17 Military Working Dogs.
But according to an official I contacted from the US War Dogs Association, “There is no way that a U.S. Military War Dog could ever have been “adopted out” by any organization or rescue.”
In September of 2015, the Aenks posted another fundraiser to bring a German Shepherd named Max from a New Jersey shelter to Shepherd’s Way. But, Max never made it to Washington. He disappeared a couple of days after Carrie Aenk picked him up in New Jersey, and evidence suggests a vet euthanized him in Pennsylvania.
You won’t be surprised to know that Carrie Aenk also has a criminal record. In 1998 she pled guilty to bank fraud and was sentenced to 33 months in prison. In 2014 she was accused of stealing $8300 worth of hay (the case was dismissed due to a technicality). And in 2015 she was sentenced to 2 months in prison for theft.
No one knows where the Aenks went after abandoning their animals, but wherever they go they will most likely come up with more schemes to swindle people out of their money.
Oh Can u add the pictures of the bones they left behind?
I don’t have them.
This makes me sick! These people should be prosecuted for fraud, animal cruelty, abandonment, and anything else. Pathetic humans!
The Rough Start Horse Rescue folks have been cleaning up the mess for horses or the legit horse rescue. They have adopted some of the horses with more to be seen this weekend at another event they are planning. The Stevens county sheriff’s office was considering animal cruelty charges for the four horses that had to be put down.
I hope they do file charges.
This isant over yet ..schuyler got out of jail recently and beware of the patriots or 3 percenters or milita sheepdog pile as they infiltrate Facebook ..also note Kathy tortu Knowles was involved with shepherds way the aenks ..also there was a weed farm loon lake also involved with aenks ..this isant over ..its called triple dirty ..because there are more facts to this case ..but thank you dogspot Seattle and roughstart horse rescue ..we will find the aenks somehow and never back down from milita..anything and thank god the poor animals got a real rescue instead of fraud neglect one ..
Also the aenks where involved in a neo Nazi weed farm too ..this investigation isant even concluded ..its called double dirty aenks white supremist neo Nazi weed farm before 3 percenters or shylur even there you terrorists bastards and animal starvers scammers your day is coming with another pile of flash bang grenades from swat sheriffs FBI. What ever they choose
If i ever catch these people or any group of people associated with them they will know what is or will be like to be starved and abandon. No animal deserves that. Rough start horse needs all the help they can get. They need food,lumber for pens and stables, medical for the animals should i say more.
What happened to the dogs that were left behind??
I think they went to a rescue.
Just dug through my email history to locate the name of this facility. I adopted a 1yr old German Shep they had named “romeo” from them in 6/2015. The place was a junkyard. There were half a dozen dogs kept in dirty, ramshackle pens, two wolves tied to kennels in the side yard, and their son “schuyler” was sitting on the porch with polishing a revolver in hand when I visited. Lucky for everyone, the dog I was there to adopt hopped right in my car when I tried to leave…. i wasnt convinced of adopting him then he made the choice for me.
Best decision Ive ever made. As “Henry” walks the green mile due to degenerative mylopathy, i was initially reaching out to see if this place was still there, and lo; all this really disappointing info and scandal. All i can say is WOW. Bummed I supported this scam (i had my suspicions), but couldnt have ended up with a better dog. -albeit, he had been abused, malnourished, and it took four years of intense training to overcome his issues, he’s the best dog ever.