She Abused Dogs at Her ‘Rescue’: The Shocking Story of Samantha Miller

Surveillance cameras inside Woofin Palooza, a self-described “rescue” in Portland, Oregon, captured a nightmare. In clip after clip, the woman who ran the facility is seen kicking, punching, and choking dogs, dragging them by their legs, and even stomping on their heads and necks. Take a look:

Samantha Miller’s Treacherous History With Animals in Her Care

The vicious violence she inflicted upon helpless dogs at Woofin Palooza was not co-owner Samantha Miller’s first betrayal of dogs in her care. Authorities investigated and shut down Miller’s prior organization, All Terrier Rescue Hunters Crossing Inc., in 2018 after investigators found that she and her mother and co-owner Jeri Miller lied that dogs in their care had been neutered/spayed, vaccinated, and seen by a veterinarian, when the animals were ill and unvaccinated, according to court filings.

To work around her plea deal from All Terrier Rescue—where she was barred from operating future non-profits—Miller opened Woofin Palooza, a self-proclaimed “rescue,” as a for-profit business. She operated Woofin Palooza under an alias, “Mandy Myers,” to conceal her disturbing history of run-ins with the law.

Video Recordings at the Scene of the Crime: Woofin Palooza

Samantha Miller violently and viciously abused dogs at her “rescue.” She attacked the animals savagely and repeatedly, without warning and on a regular basis. In the footage—seized by authorities during a raid—Miller can be seen kicking dogs and throwing them across the floor. Again and again, dogs cower as she approaches and beats them with the metal clasp of a leash. In one clip, the “rescuer” casually sips a soda while attacking the dogs she “rescued.”

Woofin Palooza Owner Betrayed Dogs Twice—First With Abuse, Then With Lies

The issues at Woofin Palooza extended beyond physical abuse. Miller’s “rescue” business scheme included taking dogs from shelters and “adopting” them to unwitting families for a profit. To make animals with serious medical and/or psychological conditions seem more desirable, she would conceal issues by drugging them with prescription medicines (without veterinary oversight) and lie to potential adopters. During the court proceedings, many people who adopted dogs from Woofin Palooza came forward to share horror stories. Because Miller told lies to profit from the dogs, many new guardians had to pay hefty medical and training fees, and in some cases, the dogs were so ill that they had to be euthanized shortly after being adopted.

Where Is Samantha Miller Now?

Miller pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and misbranding drugs and was sentenced to more than three years in prison. At the state level, she also received five years of probation for cruelty to animals and assault and was banned from owning animals for fifteen years. She later violated this provision when she was found with cats and dogs inside her home and was sentenced to an additional two years. The judge also ordered her to pay restitution to the clients who adopted neglected animals from the “rescue.”

Many ‘Rescues’ Abuse Animals

Samantha Miller’s cruelty to dogs at Woofin Palooza is far from an anomaly. PETA has uncovered many self-described “rescues” that were found to have hoarded, neglected, and abused animals entrusted to them:

• “Angel’s Gate” was a self-proclaimed animal “hospice and rehabilitation center” in Delhi, New York, that received “special needs animals” from all across the U.S.—until it was shut down and Susan Marino, the founder and operator, was charged with 22 counts of cruelty to animals after a PETA investigation. Animals at Angel’s Gate had conditions that required special, individualized, round-the-clock care, but instead, they were deprived of basic necessities. Among several other atrocities at Angel’s Gate, PETA’s investigator witnessed paralyzed animals dragging themselves until they developed bleeding ulcers; one dachshund suffered a wound so deep that it exposed the bone. Other animals needed their bladders expressed every few hours, but instead were kept in the same diaper for up to two days. One dog was denied veterinary care for so long that their rotten jaw snapped in half.
• When authorities raided the K9 and Feline Assistance Program, a self-proclaimed “animal rescue” in Tularosa, New Mexico, they discovered “twenty-two dogs [who] were extremely emaciated along with several cats in need of veterinary care, dogs who were “so malnourished they could barely walk,” and eight dead dogs who had been confined to plastic carriers and metal crates without food or water.
• Tiggy Town Rescue in Arizona claimed to care for animals, particularly elderly ones and those with medical conditions, and nurse them back to health. However, according to neighbors, the group’s operator abandoned the animals inside the home for a year and a half and returned only occasionally. According to media reports, six dead dogs were found stuffed in a kitchen trash can, the skeletal remains of another dog littered the living room, and animals’ skulls were strewn around the bedroom. Nearly every inch of the floor was covered with feces. The stench was so pungent that neighbors could smell it from the sidewalk. Twelve dogs and five cats had somehow managed to survive—barely. All of them were reportedly found in poor health and in desperate need of veterinary care. The starving animals had apparently resorted to cannibalizing the corpses of other animals who had died.
• PETA obtained crime scene photos from inside an apartment owned by Cheryn Smilen, a Miami “rescuer” who was sentenced to nearly a year in jail for leaving the cats she had hoarded to starve to death.

How You Can Help Dogs Like Those at Woofin Palooza

Many of Miller’s animal victims were transferred to her group by shelters under pressure to boost their “live release” statistics—without ensuring the animals’ safety. Already homeless, already let down by humans, shelters handed these vulnerable individuals over to a vicious abuser. Animal shelters must take responsibility and do their due diligence to ensure that the animals they release are placed in the care of reputable guardians or placement groups.

Never assume that someone calling themselves a “rescuer” is acting in animals’ best interests. Ask questions, demand transparency, and always trust your instincts. If a group seems secretive, overcrowded, or evasive, report it to authorities. Lives depend on it.