Hunting dog neglect - 41 dogs seized Plant City, FL (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Feb 21, 2007 County: Hillsborough Local Map: available Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Terry Ray Smith
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A local hog catcher watched on Feb 21 as animal abuse investigators carried away the dogs that help him make a living.
Forty-one hounds and hound mixes were rescued from poor living conditions on two rural properties in east Hillsborough County, said Marti Ryan, spokeswoman for Hillsborough County Animal Services.
One dog was missing an ear; others appeared to have broken legs, were underweight or had open wounds, she said.
Investigators charged Terry Ray Smith, 44, of 2311 Wooten Road, with six counts of animal cruelty, a felony, and 25 counts of improper confinement without food or water, a misdemeanor, jail records show. Smith remained at Orient Road Jail late Wednesday with a bail set at $24,500.
The county has received complaints about Smith's dog handling before, Ryan said.
But Smith's neighbor, Johnny Albritton, said the dogs were never neglected or abused, saying that they were given fresh hay to sleep on and plenty of water.
Albritton lives next to Smith's Wooten Road property. He said he helped Smith care for some of the dogs, which were kept next to a shed on two long, thick chains that had several smaller chains connected.
Smith is self-employed and earned money by using the dogs to track nuisance hogs, Albritton said.
Investigators removed 26 of Smith's dogs from 2903 Turkey Creek Road and 15 from the Wooten Road property, Ryan said.
"He thinks he loves his animals," she said. "But this is no way or condition in which to leave your animals."
Investigators do not think the dogs were used for fighting, Ryan said. Instead, they think Smith collected more dogs than he could handle. Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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