Pennsylvania woman pleads guilty to having dogs 'debarked'

QUARRYVILLE, Pa. (WBFF) - A Lancaster County, Pa. woman pleaded guilty to animal cruelty after she had an Iowa woman "debark" dogs, reported the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office.

Annie Beiler, 47, pleaded guilty to letting the woman remove/cut the dogs' vocal chords by "shoving a rod-like object into the dogs’ vocal chambers," according to a news release. "The manner of how she did the debarking procedures is illegal."

The person who did the debarking is Denise Felling, a former licensed veterinarian from Iowa.

Beiler pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor and summary counts of cruelty to animals.

She was sentenced to two years probation and ordered to surrender all dogs on her property.

Felling represented herself as a vet to Beiler but never got a vet license in Pennsylvania, according to the news release.