A dog trainer who rescued Gordon — a pit bull once used as a bait dog in an Akron dog-fighting ring — has run into trouble with the Geauga County Humane Society, which last month seized 15 dogs once in the trainer’s care.
Dan Makara blames the ongoing investigation on a fallout with a former landlord who evicted him from the farm where he lived and ran a dog rescue, Cleveland Rescue and Rehabilitation.
But the humane society said its probe is focused on Makara, his dogs and how he spent money people donated to care for the animals.
Leah Backo, spokeswoman for the Geauga Humane Society, said the investigation began in late August following a complaint against Makara.
On Aug. 27, investigators said they rescued 15 dogs that Makara abandoned on the farm in crates in 90-degree heat.
“The conditions were deplorable,” Christian Courtwright, chief humane agent, said in a statement.
Three days later, humane society officials said they interviewed Makara and he signed over custody of the dogs to the group.
“Records documenting training implemented and how monetary donations were used and recorded have not been found,” the humane society said. The humane society sent out a press release Wednesday asking people with information about Makara and his dog training and rescue operations to contact them.
Makara, who now operates Cleveland Area No-Kill Rescue and Training in Cuyahoga County, could not be reached Friday.
On Wednesday, he posted a lengthy defense of his actions on his rescue’s Facebook page,
Among other things, Makara said he has no access to the first rescue’s bank accounts and that he had turned over much of the operation to his former landlord leading up to his eviction. Makara said he hadn’t been on the property in the two weeks before the dogs were seized.
“In my year at (the rescue) we successfully rehomed over 30 dogs who were set to be put to sleep for various behavioral issues,” Makara said.
Gordon, the pit bull from Akron, was the first dog Makara rescued. He was not among the dogs seized, the humane society said.
The Akron Beacon Journal wrote about Gordon twice: Once in January after Makara saved him from being euthanized, trained him and found him a home; and a second time in July after Gordon’s new owner abandoned him and Makara picked him up at a shelter in Bowling Green.
At the time, Makara said another family was trying to adopt Gordon.
It was unclear Friday whether that happened.
Amanda Garrett can be reached at 330-996-3725 or agarrett@thebeaconjournal.com.