 Hoarding - 20 dogs seized, severely neglected
Galveston, TX (US)Date: Oct 17, 2004
County: Galveston
Local Map: available
Disposition: Not Charged
Abuser names unreleased
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available |
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A team including isle police officers, Harris County deputy constables, employees of the Animal Shelter and Adoption Center of Galveston County and the Houston Humane Society�s chief veterinarian seized 20 dogs from two homes on the 4200 block of Broadway.
The doctor, Tim Harkness, said that what officials found comprised �a disease nucleus.�
In all, the team seized 20 dogs that were in and around the houses that were the center of an ongoing animal cruelty investigation.
The investigation began Sunday morning, when police Sgt. David Simon went to one of the houses in response to a 9-1-1 call that ended in a phone hangup before anyone said anything.
Officer Joel Caldwell said Wednesday that police still did not know why that initial call was made, or who made it. Simon found no one home.
What he did find was a number of mangy and flea-infested dogs. Caldwell, who serves as the police department�s animal cruelty investigator, went to the area to follow up.
On Wednesday, Caldwell was armed with a warrant for seizure and was busting through house doors to find any dogs within.
�This is the worst I�ve ever seen,� he said. �In the house, they�ve eaten holes in the walls to get from room to room.�
Some of the dogs were so rife with infection that their eyes had swollen shut.
Harkness gave tranquilizer shots to aggressive dogs so they could be safely placed in kennels.
Tanisha Vanhorne, who lives about a block away, said she often heard dogs barking, but never saw people living at the houses.
Harkness said many of the dogs had mange, which can be passed to humans as scabies.
�Not only is this a danger to these animals, this is a pretty big public health concern,� he said. �This kind of environment is a perfect habitat for rats, and it�s exactly the kind of thing that can cause an outbreak of disease in humans and animals.�
Harkness said most of the animals appeared to be treatable and expressed hope that the ones who could be �socialized� would be adopted out.
County Criminal District Attorney Kurt Sistrunk observed part of the seizure, but he and Caldwell both said no decision on charges had been made as of Wednesday.
Caldwell said he was working to contact the couple listed as the residents of both houses before seeking charges in the case. A decision on charges would likely not come until next week, he said. Case UpdatesThe Houston Humane Society assumed ownership Thursday (Oct 28, 2004) of 20 dogs seized last week in an animal cruelty investigation. Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Penny Pope awarded the dogs to the agency in a hearing Thursday morning.
The dogs were seized last week in an effort that included Galveston police, Harris County deputy constables and members of the Houston Humane Society and the Galveston Animal Shelter.
Attorney Douglas Godinich, representing the woman listed as the resident of the house on Broadway where the dogs were found, said his client only owned six of the animals and had taken in the other 14, which she had found as strays.
Police on Oct. 17 found the animals while responding to a 9-1-1 hangup in the area. Four days later, the dogs were seized, as officers stepped through feces and scattered dog food to round them up. Many of the dogs had mange, flea infestation and stomach parasites. Some dogs suffered from infections so severe that their eyes had swollen shut.
No criminal charges had been filed in the case as of Thursday. | Source: The Daily News - Oct 29, 2004
Update posted on Oct 29, 2004 - 7:18AM |
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