by Teresa Eubanks, Journal Editor
“I’ve been telling them from the beginning. Here’s my number…let me know what needs to be done so the neighbors will be comfortable,” said Leslie Meyers about the concerns of the community over his dogs.
Meyers, 38, moved to Tallahassee 20 years ago, coming from St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. He said he is buying the 10-acre lot at Forest Tower Farms outside Bristol so that he, his girlfriend and his two children can get out of the city.
There is a small structure on the property with a bed and a bathroom, which he hopes to expand into a home.
“She wants to be in her own humble abode, with a hammock,” he said about his girlfriend. He wants a safe place for his children to play outside. “I don’t want to worry about someone driving by and shooting,” he said, referring to recent violent incidents in Leon County.
The family currently lives with his mother in Tallahassee.
Although he has worked as an electrician, he said his main income is generated through his business of raising and shipping pit bulls. He said airlines don’t like to deal with pit bulls, which has created a market for his service, Bayou Pride Ground Transport. He uses a van to deliver the dogs to their new owners.
He said he was out of town making deliveries when the Leon County Sheriff’s Office discovered dead and injured dogs at his property in 2010. He said he had hired someone to take care of the animals but the man failed to show up to check on them and feed them. “They were in bad shape,” he admits.
He said he served his time for his animal cruelty conviction and wants to move on.
He denies any involvement with dog fighting. “If I was trying to hide something, why would I invite the neighbors in to see it?”
“The neighbors seem to be all right,” he said of his initial encounters with Liberty County residents, but “it’s other people who have created the uproar.” He said he wants to resolve the issue. “I want everybody to be happy at the end of the day where they don’t feel I’m a threat or a problem,” he said.
He questioned that someone should be able to take the dogs without contacting him. “The dogs had food, shelter and water.” He said the food was in a 55-gallon drum with a cover, there was a barrel of water and he brought 10 gallons of water with him each time he came to the lot since he does not yet have a well. He said there was “at least 10 foot of clearance” with the dogs’ chains “where they can move around freely.”
He said either he or his girlfriend came to check on the animals each day. While some are raised for sale, he says others are pets.
“I’m a simple guy, running my business and living my life,” he said. “I’m not trying to run no kind of racket. We just want to get away from the hustle and bustle,” he said.
“Even though it is my property, I’m an outsider coming in,” he said. “I’m willing to take the steps I can to get this resolved. I don’t want any more problems in my life.”