Over 30 dogs living in "deplorable" conditions removed from Pike Co. home

INDIANA -- The Vanderburgh Humane Society says over 30 dogs were removed from a Pike County home.

Late Wednesday the VHS says they were contacted by a Pike County resident seeking help at a neighbor's residence.

VHS says the caller told them her neighbor had a large number of animals on his property that were not receiving proper care.

 

She said her neighbor was in the hospital and had been for about 2 weeks. During that time, she and a few others were trying to help feed the animals, but told VHS it was a bad situation.

VHS says the caller sought help from an animal welfare groups in Pike County but were told they were full and couldn't help.

That is when she contacted the Vanderburgh Humane Society.

Officials then got in touch with the resident in the hospital and received permission to go onto his property and remove all of the animals on Thursday.

VHS says the conditions on the property were deplorable.

 

They says the animals were living in feces and the remains of at least one dog were found in a pen with other animals.  The bones and skull left were an indication that it had been dead for some time and other dogs may have been eating the remains for the lack of food.

The dogs were located in pens, running loose and inside of the house.

Authorities say the 33 dogs of various breeds and ages were loaded into carriers and brought back to the VHS to be checked out.

VHS tells us a large number of the dogs were emaciated and starving. Most all of them had a variety of wounds and scars, most likely from fighting over food.

Officials say two of dogs were euthanized for their physical condition and aggression.

They tell us 14 of the other dogs also tested positive for heartworms.

The VHS is not releasing the name of the resident pending conversations with Pike County authorities to determine if any charges will be brought.

The Vanderburgh Humane Society says a rescue like this one is a large undertaking.

The VHS already had more than 100 animals in their care and says taking on an additional 31 dogs will stretch the staff, volunteers and funds very thin.

The VHS is hoping that the community will be willing to help these dogs.

People who are willing to help can make a monetary donation in several ways:
•Donations can be made over the phone by calling (812) 426-2563,
•in person by stopping by the VHS, located at 400 Millner Industrial Drive,
•or online here.
•You can also donate $10 by texting VHS to 20222. (Message and Data Rates May Apply) A $10 donation will be billed to their phone bill and given to the VHS.

The VHS says will your help the hope to have these dogs up for adoption in the near future.

(WFIE - Mar 7, 2014)