12 dogs found dead at Stevens County home, 39 rescued

WASHINGTON -- Earlier this month, in a remote area north of Spokane, Wash., two women who were living with little to no amenities, allowed several dogs to starve to death.

According to KHQ News, the two elderly women were living in an unheated shed with nearly two dozen Pomeranians - outside of the shed, amidst trash which was strewn about the area, were over a dozen dogs who had been left to die.

Ken Holm, one of the rescue volunteers who came to the rural property in Ford, spent several days, along with other volunteers, chiseling the frozen dogs from the ground where they had fallen over dead.

According to a neighbor, the Steven's County Sheriff's Department was aware of the situation and had advised those who were concerned about the conditions that it was none of their business... allegedly advising them that the women had the right to live their life the way that they wanted to.

Unfortunately, the women's primitive lifestyle proved deadly for the dogs who were living outside, without food or adequate shelter.

 

 

When a KHQ reporter questioned a sheriff's department spokesperson about the situation, he was advised that the women had been offered help, but they refused and were "adamant' about staying where they were; the department denies ever seeing dogs who were suffering.

According to NWCN.com, the surviving dogs were removed from the property and taken to the Spokane Humane Society - they are being nursed back to health and will be put up for adoption.

(Examiner.com - Feb 20, 2014)