A controversial dog kennel will not go before the Bartholomew County Board of Zoning Appeals — at least for now.
On Sept. 22, Aaron Oberholtzer filed for a conditional use application to operate a dog kennel at his home, located at 9173 East County Road 950N, Hope.
A short time later, kennel opponents began using social media and other forms of communication to accuse Oberholtzer of defying an order from the BZA that prohibited him from raising dogs.
But that is not a correct assessment of the 4-1 ruling made by the BZA on Jan. 22, 2018.
The board denied the couple’s request to breed up to 100 dogs on 55 acres of land they own in the northeast corner of the intersection of county roads 950N and 500E in Flatrock Township.
The reason cited by the BZA for denying the request was that they did not believe such a large dog kennel operation was the best use of land zoned as prime agricultural.
But that was then — and this is now, according to assistant city/county planner Melissa Begley. The application was withdrawn earlier this month, she said.
“This is different from what they were previously requesting,” Begley said. “The earlier request was for a separate piece of property apart from their residence. But the current application is for the land where they live.”
And that places the proposal in an entirely different category from where it was a few years ago, Begley said.
It’s standard operating procedure that when a homeowner wants a for-profit business located where he or she lives, it is processed as a home-based business, Bigley said. Those types of commercial ventures don’t necessarily require approval from the BZA, she said.
“With a home-based business, there are a set of requirements that establish a threshold,” Begley said. “For this particular business, the threshold permits 250 square feet (for the kennels). If you fall below that threshold, it’s a permitted use and there is no requirement to have a public meeting.”
Likewise, if the kennel operation begins to exceed the threshold, the couple will be required to go before the BZA and request conditional use approval.
Since home-based business changes the metric that planners use in their determinations, the number of dogs is essentially immaterial, Begley said.
“It goes from the number of animals to the amount of business space they are using,” Begley said. “(The Oberholtzers) elected to modify what they are doing, and make the business space smaller, so it falls below the threshold.”
As they did a few years ago, opponents have been describing the Oberholtzer kennel as a “puppy mill.” The term implies a large number of dogs are being bred in inhumane conditions, according to the Oxford Languages Dictionary.
During a visit where he counted about 15 adult dogs, Bartholomew County Zoning Enforcement Officer Bill Klakamp said he thought the facilities and animals on the Oberholtzer property appeared to be in good condition.
According to the USDA website, Oberholtzer’s wife, Lena Oberholtzer, is a commercial dog breeder licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That means that the kennels she and her husband formerly operated in Washington County were subject to unannounced inspections, the website states.
Lena Oberholtzer is also registered as a commercial dog breeder with the Indiana State Board of Animal Health, according to Glenda Daugherty, president of the Humane Society of Washington County.
While Klakamp admits he’s not an animal health expert, Bartholomew County Animal Control Officer Mark Case does have those credentials, Klakamp said.
“I have been there twice, and (Aaron Oberholtzer) has not been home both times,” Case said. “His daughters were there, but they wouldn’t let me on the property. While I can understand that, I still haven’t seen the dogs.”
After Klakamp reported seeing 25 dogs, Case said he will keep trying to inspect the kennel, as well as talk to Aaron Oberholtzer.
“I will get up there and plan to have a talk with them to find out what’s going on, because for us, anything over four dogs requires a special permit,” Case said.
However, Begley did say the number of dogs was not a factor for a permitted home-based business — just the amount of space being utilized for the commercial venture.
Case said he will discuss the matter with local planners.
