7-29-11
I cannot find a business license in TN under RKW Rescue and Transport, RKW Rescue or RKW Transport. She appears to be another unlicensed paid transporter! This is so wrong - not only are paid transporters required to have a business license but they are required to be registered w/the USDA and to follow all of the transport laws and the USDA regulations.
Karen's FB profile:
THIS IS THE ORIGINAL WARNING ISSUED BY THE PERSON WHO HAS INVESTIGATED KAREN, ALTHOUGH THERE MAY HAVE BEEN OTHERS AS WELL. I HAVE SPOKEN TO DESTINY AND HER INVESTIGATION WAS DONE WITH CARE AND DILIGENCE TO REPORTING ONLY THOSE CLAIMS THAT SHE COULD VERIFY. THERE IS NOT A PUBLIC RELEASE OF THE EVIDENCE AND PROOF IN THIS CASE. I KNOW THE REASONS WHY NOT BUT I WILL HAVE TO GET DESTINY'S PERMISSION TO ELABORATE ON THIS AND I AM NOT SURE THAT SHE WOULD WANT THAT INFO POSTED. HOWEVER, THE CONTENT OF HER WARNING IS STILL WORTH CONSIDERING. I WOULD HOPE THAT PEOPLE WOULD COME FORWARD AND BE WILLING TO PUBLICLY GO ON THE RECORD IF THEY CAN CONFIRM ANY OF THESE ALLEGATIONS. IF THEY DO NOT, THEN (EVEN IF THEY HAVE VALID REASONS NOT TO) THEY ARE STILL ULTIMATELY ALLOWING THIS WOMAN TO REMAIN UNCHECKED AND TO PUT ANIMALS IN DANGER - IF THESE ALLEGATIONS ARE TRUE. I WOULD ENCOURAGE THESE INDIVIDUALS, SHELTERS AND RESCUES TO GO ON THE RECORD AS IT IS THE ONLY WAY TO PROTECT ANIMALS FROM THIS WOMAN IF SHE IS THE DANGER TO ANIMALS THAT THIS WARNING CLAIMS. COURAGE IS DOING THE RIGHT THING, IN SPITE OF FEAR OR UNCERTAINY. PLEASE LET COURAGE WIN OUT FOR THE SAKE OF THE ANIMALS!
Good morning All,
There is a woman, using the names of Karen Strickland, Karen Symons, Or Karen Symons-Strickland that is doing transport for animals. Her facebook page has her set up as as the owner of rescue and transport company. SHE IS A SCAM! SHE IS ABUSIVE AND NEGLECTFUL TOWARD THE ANIMALS! She has willingly admitted that she drugs animals she transports as to not have to deal with them needing to relieve themselves, she also provides no food or water to them for the same reasons. The crates she uses are too small, to prevent the animal from being able to sit/stand up in order, again, to prevent the chance of a mess being less likely. She has been seen hitting them b/c they were whining, puppies and dogs alike, being smacked in the face and told to shut up! One crated dog was stuck in the crate from Tues-Thursday while she was on the road for transport, upon arrival his adopter was mortified to see him covered in his own urine and what little fecal matter he was able to relive himself of in spite of the drugs she had given him! She has agreed to transport dogs that people to this day still have no idea where their dogs or their money went to! One shelter put them on their DNA/F/T LIST after she harrassed an adopter in a wheel chair saying that she wasnt going to give them their dog b/c they obviously could not care for it!!! Another placed her on their list when, two of the puppies she was transporting for them did not make it to them. When asked where they were she replied she had adopted them out along the way!!!!!!!!! My experience with her ended fortunately enough with the dog being returned safely and seemingly unharmed, but there was a span of about 12hrs where nobody could reach her and we did not know where the dog was at! Thankfully he was returned to the kennels and is waiting for reliable and safe transport. I dont know how she has been able to continue this for so long but she has got to be stopped!!!!! These animals depend on us!!!! This makes me ill, to think of those poor animals, and what most have already been through, to be entrusted to someone that will treat them so horribly!!! :(
PLEASE HELP ME STOP HER!! THIS CANNOT BE TOLERATED, OR ALLOWED TO CONTINUE!
Thanks for your time ~ Destiny
There is a woman, using the names of Karen Strickland, Karen Symons, Or Karen Symons-Strickland that is doing transport for animals. Her facebook page has her set up as as the owner of rescue and transport company. SHE IS A SCAM! SHE IS ABUSIVE AND NEGLECTFUL TOWARD THE ANIMALS! She has willingly admitted that she drugs animals she transports as to not have to deal with them needing to relieve themselves, she also provides no food or water to them for the same reasons. The crates she uses are too small, to prevent the animal from being able to sit/stand up in order, again, to prevent the chance of a mess being less likely. She has been seen hitting them b/c they were whining, puppies and dogs alike, being smacked in the face and told to shut up! One crated dog was stuck in the crate from Tues-Thursday while she was on the road for transport, upon arrival his adopter was mortified to see him covered in his own urine and what little fecal matter he was able to relive himself of in spite of the drugs she had given him! She has agreed to transport dogs that people to this day still have no idea where their dogs or their money went to! One shelter put them on their DNA/F/T LIST after she harrassed an adopter in a wheel chair saying that she wasnt going to give them their dog b/c they obviously could not care for it!!! Another placed her on their list when, two of the puppies she was transporting for them did not make it to them. When asked where they were she replied she had adopted them out along the way!!!!!!!!! My experience with her ended fortunately enough with the dog being returned safely and seemingly unharmed, but there was a span of about 12hrs where nobody could reach her and we did not know where the dog was at! Thankfully he was returned to the kennels and is waiting for reliable and safe transport. I dont know how she has been able to continue this for so long but she has got to be stopped!!!!! These animals depend on us!!!! This makes me ill, to think of those poor animals, and what most have already been through, to be entrusted to someone that will treat them so horribly!!! :(
PLEASE HELP ME STOP HER!! THIS CANNOT BE TOLERATED, OR ALLOWED TO CONTINUE!
Thanks for your time ~ Destiny
KAREN STRICKLAND
POSSIBLE ALIASES
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Name
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KAREN M STRICKLAND 39
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KAREN M BISHOP 39
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KAREN M BURGOS 39
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MICHAEL K KANE 39
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KAREN M SHARPTON 39
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KAREN BURGOS 39
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KAREN BISHOP 39
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KAREN STRICKLAND 39
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KAREN BURGESS 39
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KAREN MICHELLE BISHOP 39
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KAREN MICHELLE BURGOS 39
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KAREN STRICKLAN 39
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KAREN SYMONS 39
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KAREN MICHELLE SHARPTON 39
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KAREN MICHELLE STRICKLAND 39
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KAREN MICHELLE SYMONS 39
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K M BURGOS 39
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KAREN BISHOP 39
ALSO: KAREN MURPHY - AS OF JULY 2011 |
I cannot remember who I heard it from, however have heard the very same things about her. Sadly there are many like her out there..I have warned other rescues about another such person and they could care less... very sad.
ReplyDeleteLisa, there are many who have reported terrible abuse and awful behavior by Karen Strickland that has endangered the safety and lives of animals on her transports. It is very sad that people are still using her services in spite of the horrible experiences about her that have been reported. I am aware of many other bad transporters as well and you are right, it would seem that many people, rescues, and shelters just do not care which is indeed very sad. All we can do is document these horrors, expose the responsible parties, and report them to all of the appropriate authorities and organizations and hope that people will beware and not entrust them with animals in the future. If you'd like to share any info re: the other bad transporter that you have information on, I'd be happy to try to help expose them for you.
DeleteI have been trying to adopt a dog from her for over a month, and she led our family on a goose chase always saying something has come up etc. We tried to work with her for over a month to adopt a dog that my family really wanted. After a month she completely stoped with all contact. I am really hoping something is done and these poor animals don't suffer in any way. I was trying so hard to help adopt a dog. :(
ReplyDeleteThat is very sad and I am so sorry that your family did not get to adopt the dog that you wanted. I don't know why KSS would give you the run around about a dog that you wanted to adopt unless she had something to hide. Like if she no longer had the dog to adopt out. Maybe she adopted it out to someone else or sold it more than likely? I would love to see her shut down for good. Sadly too many are afraid to come forward because I know there are stories that have not been published yet regarding her. :(
DeleteI was contacted by Karen and asked to help clear her name. So far all she has sent me is the link to this blog. I would like to know how the information was obtained about her hitting and drugging animals for transport. Did someone see her do it or is it hearsay? She is offering up transport receipts, veterinarian receipts anything I ask her for she will offer up. So I would like to get at the truth and see where all of this information is coming from.
DeleteThank you
Anonymous: We've heard that Karen has recently contacted several people and asked for their help in clearing her name. We published this warning about her because we believe that the source of the info (Destiny) has proof of her allegations against Karen. We do not have the proof ourselves which is why this is only a warning and not a DNA. It is my understanding that there are eyewitnesses who have issued statements re: the alleged abuse and drugging of animals by Karen. It's not purely hearsay nor is it only a handful of people making these allegations. I would also like hard proof of the allegations but as I said, we do not have that. We do however find overwhelming circumstantial evidence to support the allegations and to warrant extreme caution where animals are concerned. I have no idea how her providing receipts would help to counter any of these claims and if she can prove that she is innocent then why has she not done so? These allegations have been surrounding her since at least 2010. I sincerely wish you luck finding out the truth and proving it, that is needed I agree.
DeletePlease provide some documentation to support the allegations posted re: Karen Symons Strickland. I am not defending the subject (Karen Symons Strickland) or affirming the the content of this blog, but am seeking the truth. Having looked into this at length, the only thing to date that I've found is hearsay and even much of that is based on "anonymous" posts.
ReplyDeleteFrom several of my forums, I have found one post that is "owned" but in viewing Destiny's (presumed) original email, it appears that Destiny may be an alias (original email is traced back to a different name in California).
For the Record: I have also contacted Karen Symons Strickland asking that she address these allegations.
Thanks in advance for any information you can provide.
Exactly what I was thinking
DeleteK9 Good Shepherd: You are well within your rights to request documentation and proof re: the allegations against Karen. Unfortunately, we do not have the evidence and proof that you are needing. If we did we would have issued a DNA/DNR/DNT for her but since we never had that sort of proof we only issued this warning. We issued this so that the warning that had been circulated via email and on Facebook was more publicly accessible to all. As I just posted above in another reply, we feel that there is enough circumstantial evidence to provide a basis for posting the warning. We would also like the proof and evidence of these allegations but that has not been provided to us. I believe in the truth as well and generally I do not support claims against others that are not supported in evidence. In this case, Destiny has proven to be credible, to have conducted a comprehensive investigation and we don't see that she has any ulterior motives or any reason to fabricate any of this. There is however more than enough cause for concern to support this warning.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure what you mean by your only finding one "owned" post or why you would think that Destiny was an alias based on her original email. I am unaware of a California connection to any of this.
That's great but so far Karen has not attempted to comment here. She is welcome to do so if she wishes to address any of this.
You are welcome. I wish I could provide you with the information you are seeking. If we had proof, we would publish it here but we have nothing of that nature. Good luck sorting out the truth and I do hope that you find the answers you are looking for.
"K9 good shepherd" assuming that is not your name,of course.. . I use my name and contact info b/c I have no reason not to and plenty of people/organiztions were in contact with me after this post, surprisingly most to tell me that they were surprised she was still operating since their organizations had posted DNA/DNR warnings about her months(some even a couple years!) Prior to my warning. She is also listed on a national registry for DNA. This is not a registry people can namedrop on when they feel the need to do so it must be an actual shelter or rescue organization that does so, and she was listed there well before my warning about her. Unfortunately not all organizations check this, which baffles my mind. Her aliases are all a matter of public record, and some of have come to light as people using her for transport are shocked when they figure out that the name she gave is not always the name she uses...her threats and harrassment make people fear for their homes,sleves and animals, since she does transport she knows where these people live, and you only have to watch her postings for a short time generally to watch her nehavior become juvenile,unprofessional and threatening.
ReplyDeleteThank you Destiny for commenting here and helping to address the comment above. I have no doubt that the allegations against Karen are true. Although, I will admit that I tried to give her the benefit of the doubt for a long time because no one was producing hard proof, there were only allegations. However, there are just too many allegations to ignore when animal lives are at risk. I have heard way too many stories from people who reported horrible things about how she treated the animals in her care and about how she threatened others. She and Amy Verder worked together for a long time and Amy was one of her loudest cheerleaders so that is another huge red flag. I trust that you did your due diligence when you investigated Karen and I also believe that you only reported what you believed to be the true facts in this case. Thank you for standing up for the animals and speaking out!
DeleteI BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU ARE SAYING DESTINY..
ReplyDeleteI BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU ARE SAYING "DESTINY'..
ReplyDeleteI have used Karen for transport , the dogs arrived in good condition , clean and happy, they were happy being handled by her when they arrived and did not slappear to have been mistreated or abused or drugged in anyway. They where in appropriate size crates and she stayed in touch providing her ETA and was reachable by me the entire trip from South to North!!
ReplyDeleteAs it was her last stop she also sat on the ground with me and the dogs waiting for their adopters( who were late) to arrive!!
Until someone shows me some creditable proof more than hearsay, I do not believe any of it!
This appears to be nothing more than a smear campaign by someone with an axe to grind!! It certainly was not my experience on the transports I used her for and having meet her , I don't think it's true!!
I have personally used Karen in the past on several transports South to North. I had NO problems what so ever with her being reachable and keeping up to date along the way. When the dogs arrived they were all happy, in appropriate size kennels , clean and did not appear in any way to have been drugged or mishandled.
ReplyDeleteI have heard rumors for several years but "NO ONE" has ever provided anything more than just that rumor. He said, she said and NOT even from the person that supposedly made the allegations. I find all of it very hard to believe having met Karen myself and since it was not my experience with her but, just the opposite it is my opinion that this is nothing more than a smear campaign for someone who had a dispute or disagreement and everyone has jumped on the band wagon.
I further believe that people believe this type of unsupported gossip and smear tactics and start spreading it themselves.
I heard, but I can't remember who from , or I read but, I don't remember where.
If you havent had a personal experience yourself that you are relaying yourself then you should not be putting rumors out and smearing someones reputatation.
I have used Karen personally and I am here to tell you I think its all a bunch of BS started by someone who had an axe to grind.
Hi Karen! Thank you for commenting and sharing your experience with us and I'm sorry I didn't see your comment sooner. I am glad that you have had positive interactions with Karen and that the animals involved seemed to be well taken care of and were transported comfortably.
DeleteI understand where you're coming from and I agree that it would be much better if there were documented proof of the allegations against Karen. However, my understanding is that most of the people who originally reported that Karen was mistreating animals felt too scared because of Karen's alleged threats against them to expose her publicly. Personally, I think protecting animals should come first regardless of any threats that may have been made, but it was their decision to make.
I can only respond to why we posted this warning about Karen, not what anyone else may have stated about her, and we felt it was necessary to warn others in the interest of saving other animals from possible harm at her hands. The accusations against her are overwhelming and we did speak to Destiny who investigated her and got more information about Karen than anyone else ever had (as far as we know). We could not in good conscience say nothing just because there was not hard proof and help to enable her if in fact she was/is hurting animals in any way. This is not a court of law and our role is to help expose those who are hurting animals under the guise of rescue, not to convict anyone. On the other hand, I assure you that we did not issue our warning lightly. We did all that we could to verify the allegations and I personally gave Karen the benefit of the doubt for several years before I was convinced that she was a danger to animals. Since the time we posted this article we have spoken to Karen and other information has come to light, such as specific details re: how Amy Verder and Karen worked together (transporting animals with fake vaccination records for example), and we are only more convinced that the allegations against Karen are accurate.
I agree that everyone should take this for what it is, a warning, and they should do their own research and use their own judgment to determine whether or not Karen should be trusted with animals. No one should rely on second-hand information without proof to back it up alone, there should be other reasons to believe the claims made.
You are entitled to your feelings and I hope that Karen is now being responsible with the animals in her care, but I hope that someday you don't regret supporting her. And for the record, I never found any evidence to support that this was any kind of an effort to slander Karen or hurt her, or any personal agenda behind the allegations. I believe that those who made the allegations genuinely believed that she was mistreating animals and I am glad they spoke up.
We should all be on the same side here, the animals' side.
wow the story i could tell...
ReplyDeleteHi Keri! If you have an experience with Karen (or Amy) that you would like to share, we'd love to hear it!
DeleteI was going to get a pup off of craigs list. She was going to help find me find a home for the baby. Had it all set up. She called these people and said she was me. Needless to say I never got puppy. If your on the up and up about things and have to use somebody elses name!? I have the msg from her saying she told them she was me. Something just dont seem right about that.
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous! Thank you for sharing your experience with us and I'm sorry I didn't see your comment much sooner. I am very sorry to hear that things did not go well with the pup you were trying to save and find a good home for. It could be that Karen either did or was trying to get the pup herself, or she was working with someone else who wanted the pup. If that's the case, then it could not have been for any good reason since she went to such underhanded measures to undermine your efforts. I can only hope that this poor puppy ended up in a good home somehow. It's sad that there are people who look at animals as a commodity, something to use for their personal gain, rather than for the precious lives that they are.
DeleteFact is rescue is nothing but drama and he said she said bs! Without solid proof their is nothing that should b said until evidence is given! If ppl are truly doing business with her and having issues why no screenshots, pics, vet records, ect? Hearsay only hurts the animals worse! I have dealt with Karen on a couple occasions and never had an issue, she has been a helping hand when needed, but I will say we have also had our differences... Until proof is given this is rediculous and also known as slander... Wish u all the best but truly without proof u r asking for trouble no matter who u r talking about...
ReplyDeleteHi Danae N Zach! Thank you for your comment and for sharing your experience with Karen. I just addressed a similar comment above re: this so please take a look if you'd like to better understand why we issued this warning about Karen.
DeleteI agree that there is a lot of drama in rescue, but sometimes where there is smoke there is also fire. We would not be doing our due diligence if we ignored information just because we could not prove or disprove the information. When animal lives are on the line, it is our responsibility to look at all of the information and do what is in the best interest of the animals involved. In this case, we felt that issuing a warning was necessary.
I am glad that you had positive experiences with Karen and for the animals' sake, I sincerely hope that she is being responsible now. It doesn't change what may have happened in the past, but it would be a start.
I have gotten a Rescue from Ms. Strickland. I had no problems, even tho the dog was in TX originally. The dog showed up on time, with complete papers, shots and spaying complete. She asked for nothing but what was on the invoice ( shots, spaying, etc.). I have found and believe her to be trustworthy and competent, at least in this transaction.
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous! Thank you for sharing your experience with us and I am very glad that it was a positive one. I am happy that she transported your dog to you without incident and I hope that Karen is now being a lot more responsible with the animals in her care.
DeleteWho isn't using real names? I assume you're referring to Karen's many aliases.
ReplyDeleteOh I see, you were referring to the comment above about Karen using the other woman's name! :)
ReplyDelete