Animal hoarding case leads to recovery of more than two dozen dogs
An animal hoarding case in South Carolina prompted response from Cashiers Highlands Humane Society on Friday.
According to CHHS executive director David Stroud, Anderson County, South Carolina authorities contacted the Cashiers shelter when they found more than 50 small dogs on the property.
“We are an emergency placement partner for law enforcement when they find animal abuse or animal hoarding situations, one of only about 350 in the nation,” Stroud said. “We got the call around 9 a.m. and by 2 p.m. we were on site collecting animals, doing basic assessments and determining the best course of action for each dog.”
More than 50 Chihuahua mixes were found roaming outside and inside a mobile home in Belton, South Carolina, after a medical welfare check was requested on behalf of the elderly owner of the property.
While Stroud noted that the condition of the animals was not as dire as CHHS has dealt with in previous rescues, local animal control officers on the scene described the housing situation as “deplorable.” There were multiple holes in the floor throughout the home where sewage was seeping, and the floor itself was so weak that rescuers had to walk on the exposed support beams in the floor just to keep from falling through.
The Chihuahuas were taken to Anderson County PAWS where they were met by representatives of CHHS. The CHHS Animal Rescue Team brought back 17 of the Chihuahuas to its no-kill shelter as well as 10 mixed-breed puppies from the government-run shelter in Anderson. The 27 dogs range in age from five months to 10 years old. The rescued dogs are undergoing full medical evaluations and are receiving any and all necessary veterinary care, including three of the dogs who are heartworm positive.
“The number of dogs that we can bring back to CHHS depends on the size of the animals and the capacity at our shelter,” Stroud said. “Our record is 44 animals, a mix of dogs and cats, in 2016. In 2018, prior to a hurricane we went to the Outer Banks and picked up 72 animals and we dropped some of them off at shelters across the central and western parts of the state.”
The dogs rescued from the South Carolina hoarding case will spend the next week adjusting to life at CHHS before applications will be accepted for their adoption. Applications are processed on a first-come, first-approved basis.
Some of the dogs may have more recovery time ahead of them and they are going to receive full medical care before their spay/neuter surgery date is scheduled. After spay/neuter, they will go to their new forever home. To learn more about the availability of any of the rescued dogs, call the CHHS shelter at 828-743-5752.
“These brave canine survivors spent their first night in what might have been their entire lifetimes on a soft bed and in a clean, quiet and safe place,” Stroud said. “No one is crying anymore, howling or begging for help. Their nightmare is over, and the journey to what will become the loving forever home they deserve has now begun.”