A warning, this story contains details and images of animal mistreatment which may distress some viewers. Former workers from Tasmanian Labradoodles have broken their silence, revealing disturbing details about what they saw and were asked to do at what was then Tasmania’s largest puppy farm. One worker says he was asked to put live puppies in a freezer, while others say they saw evidence of over-breeding, dogs being hit with PVC pipes and shaken to the point of being stunned so they would sit still for photos.
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00:00A 30-minute drive from Launceston, just off the highway, this property housed Tasmania's
00:15largest puppy farm, surrounded by farmland with few neighbours.
00:20At its peak, more than 250 breeding dogs were here.
00:26Connor, whose name we've changed, was 19 when he accepted his first full-time job at Tasmanian
00:32Labradoodles. He was excited, but says what happened here still haunts him.
00:39What were you expecting when you started working here?
00:42You know, it's an animal facility. I was hoping that there was a lot more engagement with the
00:50animal. More, I guess, fun, you know. I was hoping, you know, to work with animals.
00:59And it wasn't quite what you expected?
01:02No.
01:04Connor says he'd been there for around two months when he was asked by the owners
01:08to put a live puppy in the freezer.
01:10The first time I remember it was a puppy that was born with its internals coming out of its body.
01:22And I rang them straight away, saying, what do I do here? And they told me to put it in the freezer.
01:33What did you make of that at the time?
01:35I was confused. I was upset. I just didn't know what to do because, obviously, the puppy was
01:45suffering. And I didn't know how to deal with it humanely. You know, I had nothing and they
01:54weren't there. So I was there by myself. And I just didn't know what to do.
01:59After that, he says it was a regular occurrence for sick, dying or dead puppies and dogs to be
02:09put into the freezer. He also saw dogs being hit with PVC pipe and shaken to the point of being
02:16stunned before photos were taken for the website. Connor started to document what he was witnessing
02:23and says he reported it to the RSPCA six times, but nothing changed.
02:30Never saw anyone from the RSPCA turn up when I was working.
02:35Another worker has told the ABC on his first day he saw a dead dog being dragged along the ground
02:41and put in the freezer. That worker also said puppies were kept in small crates from 4 p.m.
02:47to 7 a.m. and there were limited records of which dogs had mated with each other.
02:53The RSPCA first brought 70 charges for overbreeding against the owners Paul and Elizabeth
02:59Bartlett in 2023. But those charges were dropped in exchange for the puppy farm closing in July.
03:06Now the RSPCA has launched an independent review
03:10to see if any of the former workers could be criminally prosecuted.
03:17Were you surprised when you found out that you might be prosecuted for what you did at the farm?
03:22I felt like I didn't have much choice in how to do my role and
03:30they were the ones that were telling me what to do.
03:35The ABC asked the RSPCA for an interview to respond to the concerns of the workers.
03:40It agreed but then later declined saying it didn't want to prejudice the review process.
03:47The workers are now calling for tougher animal welfare legislation.
03:51Tasmanian Labradoodles has been contacted for comment.