NEW MEXICO -- Otero County Sheriff's Deputies responded to a dog sanctuary in Chaparral Saturday.
Volunteers could be seen taking dogs out and sheriff's officials spoke to those in the area.
"Oh, every night they screamed, those dogs. Every night they barked and barked, they wouldn't let you sleep," said Rogelio Valdez, a neighbor.
Valdez lives across the street from the Desert Mission Sanctuary for Dogs. He said this isn't the first time sheriff's deputies have come out.
"They came last night and they left and they came in the morning again," Valdez said.
According to their website, the sanctuary is a non-profit that serves abandoned, abused, and injured dogs in Chaparral. They say they are dedicated to finding the dogs forever homes and providing a place for those who can't be adopted out.
"Since they got here they had four or six and then the number kept going up and up," Valdez said.
Sheriff's deputies told us there were more than 100 dogs inside, some reportedly appeared sick. Our cameras captured one dead just outside the sanctuary walls.
"But they did have some that were very angry. And it was dangerous for the creatures, for the kids that go to school, for the women that pass in that area," Valdez said.
Exactly what sheriff's officials were doing and how many of the animals they took, if any, is still unclear.
Some volunteers who came by say they picked up around 20 dogs, mostly puppies.
"The people would help them, they would bring them dogs so they could take care of them and they brought them food," Valdez said.
Valdez said he never worried for his well-being living so close-by, but can rest a little easier now.
"It didn't surprise me that they came. It's good, it's better that they take them," Valdez said.
The Otero County Sheriff's Department said they wouldn't have any information available until Monday.
(KFOXTV - September 7 2013)
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