Animal officials converged on this small house. There was a heavy stench as you approached the house.
Animal Control Officials Seize 28 Live Dogs and 6 Dead Dogs From Small Home, GOODRICH, May 19, 2010 - At approximately 10 am on May 19, 2010, officers from the Polk County Sheriff's Office, City of Livingston, and Houston SPCA converged on a small house located at 138 Wahoo Trail near FM-2665. The elderly resident of the home recently fell and called EMS. When EMS personnel arrived, they weren't able to get to her because the dogs she kept were too protective. They also noted the horrible conditons. They then notified the Sheriff's Office. The occupant of the home was an 84 year old lady who has no family. 34 dogs (Rat Terriers) were kept in the house, and some were allowed in a small fenced in area in the back of the house. A strong stench was heavy in the air a short distance from the house. The interior of the home was littered with feces, urine, and dead puppies. Persons who try to take care of too many animals are called hoarders. According to SPCA Investigator Charles Jantzen, a hoarder is a medical condition where a person takes in too many animals to the point that they exceed their capacity to adequately take care of the animals. "A typical hoarder doesn't have the means to take care of the vast quantity of animals that they have and when the animals are in such a confined area then the confinement overall becomes substandard to the point where the animals develop illnesses and don't have proper socialization thus causing psychological problems" (See video interview below for more details). A total of 28 dogs were seized and 6 dead puppies. The Houston SPCA took the dogs to Houston where they'll be cleaned, fed, kept in acceptable conditions, and each dog evaluated to see if they can be adopted. Polk County Sheriff's Deputies Ray Brown, Crystal Rogers, City of Livingston Animal Control Officer Melissa Blackburn and Houston SPCA Investigators Charles Jantzen, Liz Pavlicek, and Robert McCarty seized the animals. The dogs were put in pet taxis. As far as the house resident of the house, she will not be allowed back in the home as it is dangerously filthy and unsanitary. She will be cared for by Adult Protective Services. Animal Control Deputy Ray Brown stated toPolkCountyToday.com: "We're not here to issue citations, but only to help this lady and the dogs. She's being taken out of an extremely unhealthy environment that's not safe for humans nor animals to live in".
WARNING: Some images below may be disturbing to some people. 1 picture shows deceased puppies.
A glimpse through an open window shows the horrible conditons of the home's interior (Melissa Blackburn with the City of Livingston brings out one of over 30 dogs that were kept in the house).
More dogs were handed out through a window and put into a pet taxi.
This dog only recently gave birth to two puppies and was nursing them in a filthy cage where she was kept.
Deputy Ray Brown brings out another dog (All the dogs were Rat Terriers).
Some of the dogs were in a fenced area in the back yard of the house.
Because Rat Terriers are so small, officials were able to put as many as 3 in a pet taxi for transport.
This male was very agressive. Officers were forced to use a device to take him. He was loaded into a pet taxi unharmed.
These two puppies were just 2 of the 8 deceased dogs found in the small house.
Melissa Blackburn with the City of Livingston Animal Control Department.
The small dogs were loaded into a van from the Houston SPCA.
Charles Jantzen and Liz Pavlicek (both with the Houston SPCA) take an inventory of the dogs.
Dangerously unhealthy conditions: Deputy Ray Brown washes his hands after they finished safely removing all the dogs.
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