Starving dogs in Texas rescued, owner charged

Amy LaBuff told police she's 'not the only
person who does this kind of thing'

TEXAS -- Captain Rex Evans has seen much in his long career in law enforcement, but nothing could prepare him for the scene at two Liberty County trailer homes where starving dogs were found clinging to life this week.

Responding to an animal neglect tip, Liberty County sheriff's deputies arrived at two trailer homes Monday on County Road 35 to find about 20 emaciated dogs, including one canine tied to a tree that had been attacked and eaten by other dogs. The animal was euthanised at the scene by a volunteer veterinarian.

Veterinary technicians euthanize a pit bull dog that was
found starving to death at a Tarkington home on CR 310. The
dog suffered bite marks to its head and ears that made it
appear that other dogs had been trying to eat it,
according to Liberty County Sheriff's Captain Rex Evans.

Deputies said the dogs had apparently been abandoned recently, with no food or water other than a trough of stagnant muck covered by an oily sheen.

At least four dead cats and dogs were found locked inside a dilapidated mobile home on the approximate quarter to half-acre property. They had been locked in steel cages without food or water as well, left to die.

The animals at the site included pit bulls, mixed-breed dogs and two Chihuahuas.

"I haven't seen one in 23 years that was that bad," Evans said. "The odor was just unbelievable, especially once we opened the doors to the two trailers. There was probably a half inch of feces in each cage the animals were contained. You could literally count their ribs and see their entire bone structure, including (on) their face."

Sgt. Investigator Braxton Morton tries to comfort a pit bull
dog that was among 20 dogs and cats found neglected and
without food nor water at a property on CR 310 in Tarkington.

The stench was so unbearable, Evans said, that firefighters from the Tarkington and Cleveland fire departments arrived with breathing apparatus to assist in the case.

As somber investigators pored over the scene, the dogs' owner arrived and was quickly taken into custody, Evans said. The suspect, Amy LaBuff, 36, of the 300 block of CR 310, has been charged with cruelty to animals and was being held in the Liberty County Jail.

Liberty County sheriff's deputies Tommy Koen and James
Sprayberry talk to Amy LaBuff, the reported owner of 20
animals that were found neglected and dying at a property
on CR 310 in Tarkington. LaBuff has been charged
with 20 counts of animal cruelty.

Asked about the dogs' condition, the woman told officers that "she's not the only person who does this kind of thing," Evans said. "I told her that what happened here is not right, and we're going to get to the bottom of this."

Officials from the Houston SPCA arrived to take possession of the surviving animals.

Evans said he is not optimistic about the dogs' fate.

The pit bull pictured to the far right had to be euthanized
after other dogs had reportedly started devouring it while it was
still alive. Capt. Rex Evans with the Liberty County Sheriff's
Office said the other animals confined with the dog, mostly pit bulls,
were without any other food source and had begun cannibalizing other dogs.

"Based on what I observed, I'm not sure if any of them will survive," he said. "I know dogs are resilient, but they were in pretty bad shape."

(Houston Chronicle - November 16, 2011)