Chichester Animal Rescue Stripped of License

Late last month, Teresa Paradis, the owner of Live and Let Live Farm in Chichester, received a jarring letter from the state Department of Agriculture.

Although scant on details, the effect of the letter was clear: the farm – a beloved rescue organization set on 67 sprawling acres in Chichester that takes in animals ranging from horses to geese – had been stripped of its pet vendor license.

No dogs or cats could come or go; the canine and feline operation had effectively been frozen.

The department’s assistant veterinarian, Nathan Harvey, wrote that Live and Let Live had failed to comply with seven categories of standards during two inspections over the past year.

But the license rejection struck Paradis as a heavy-handed, punitive action that stemmed from a five-year feud between her farm and the department.

Since an interaction with a department inspector that Paradis said occurred in 2019, Live and Let Live Farm has been fined at least $4,000 for various violations by the department.

The organization, which opened in 1997, had never been fined prior, according to Paradis.

Last year, Paradis sued the department, alleging it was requiring the farm – the largest equine rescuer in New England – to obtain a license to transport horses that was meant for livestock dealers, not animal rescue organizations.

This June, a Merrimack County Superior Court judge issued a preliminary finding in the farm’s favor, ruling that while the litigation remained pending, the farm did not need the license the department claimed was required.