Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Hoarding 20 dogs in extreme heat

Hoarding 20 dogs in extreme heat
Clarksville, TN (US)

Incident Date: Sunday, Jul 8, 2007
County: Montgomery
Local Map: available
Disposition: Not Charged

Abuser names unreleased

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

Case ID: 11709

Classification: Hoarding

Animal: dog (non pit-bull)

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Animal control seized 20 dogs found in a filthy Clarksville home. The entire home was filled with garbage and feces. The terrier mixes were suffereing in extreme heat in a home without air conditioning. Many were infested with fleas. Several will be available for adoption at the Nashville Humane Association starting on Monday morning. Animal control decided not to cite the dogs' owner with animal cruelty.

Case Updates

Based on Tennessee law, the family on Paddock Road, from whom 20 dogs were rescued, could be charged with animal cruelty. State statute is violated if a person "fails unreasonably to provide necessary food, water, care or shelter for an animal in the person's custody."

The man who owns the Paddock Road house certainly violated that statute, said David Selby, director of Montgomery County Animal Control and Adoption.

However, Selby decided not to cite the man, a military veteran, because he is currently being pursued for animal cruelty offenses by the Veterans Administration.

"The VA is taking him to court," Selby said.

"They're going to get an order that he can't have any more dogs."

Selby said he further decided not to issue a citation because the man is bipolar, diabetic, has numerous other mental and physical problems and is being chased by creditors for unpaid debts.

Because he has not been charged, The Leaf-Chronicle is not releasing the man's name.

Mary Pat Boatfield is the executive director of Nashville Humane Association, a nonprofit animal rescue that provided $3,200 worth of spay or neuter surgeries, vaccinations, grooming and other care to 16 of the dogs taken from the Paddock Road home. Boatfield praised Selby.

"He went the extra mile to get these dogs what they needed and to give them an extra chance to find another home," Boatfield said about Selby. "Many of them have dental problems, skin conditions, poor nutrition. Someone like David, he gives them a chance."

Boatfield said animal hoarding is a widespread problem that, when discovered, is a huge drain on animal control budgets, because the pets involved need medical care and rehabilitation.

"In hoarding situations, the animals don't get the veterinary care they need, and the individuals, for whatever reason, don't see the deteriorating conditions around them," Boatfield said. "The house becomes uninhabitable. The individual doesn't have normal relationships with their family, friends or community."

According to "Animal Hoarding � An In-Depth Look at the Phenomenon," www.animalhoarding.org, hoarders are people who accumulate a large number of animals, fail to provide minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation and veterinary care, and deny both their inability to provide care and the impact of that failure on the animals, the household and human occupants of the home.

Randall Lockwood, Humane Society of the United States vice president for Research and Educational Outreach, writes that animal hoarding "is very often a symptom of a greater mental illness, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder."

Many hoarders will do almost anything to avoid losing their animals. Boatfield praised the local man for his prudence in signing ownership of the dogs over to Animal Control.

"The owner did relinquish authority and allow them to be removed," Boatfield said. "People in this situation should make a call to Animal Control for help."

Source: The Leaf Chronicle - July 7, 2007
Update posted on Jul 17, 2007 - 2:04PM

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News Channel 5 - July 8, 2007

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Hoarding 20 dogs in extreme heatClarksville, TN (US)

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Hoarding 20 dogs in extreme heat
Clarksville, TN (US)