Shame on these pet owners!

[AZRedhawk44]

http://www.wlfi.com/dpp/news/local/local_wlfi_monticello_dogs_left_alone_at_home_for_7_months_20090831

Dogs left alone at home
for 7 months
Financial issues surround situation

Updated: Tuesday, 01 Sep 2009, 2:02 PM EDT
Published : Monday, 31 Aug 2009, 11:13 PM EDT

    * Kristin Crowley

MONTICELLO, Ind. (WLFI) - Four dogs have been kept in a fenced kennel outside a foreclosed house in Monticello, Indiana for over seven months with no one to care for them.

Neighbors are furious about four dogs left behind at this house, and some said these dogs have been neglected and are starving.

"These dogs are lucky if they get fed once a week, and that's with the neighbors being generous enough to be able to throw scraps and stuff over to them," said neighbor Becky Harrison.

The former owner, Patricia Willoughby, said financial issues contributed to the current situation. Willoughby, who now lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana, said she and her family were forced into a homeless shelter and were unable to take the dogs with them.

Willoughby said she thought they would be able to return for the animals, and that she had arranged with a neighbor to bring them food and water.

But Willoughby departed in January, over nine months ago, and Willoughby's dogs have been the subject of much discussion. 17-year-old neighbor Brittany Henson said some of the dogs have died from neglect.

"There used to be 10 ... in there, and there's like three or four now. There were puppies that me and my boyfriend tried to rescue, but they ended up dying," said Henson.

Another neighbor said that there were multiple plastic bags on the property with dead dogs in them, but Willoughby said she hadn't heard about anything like that. She said she had asked a neighbor to check on the dogs just before speakign with News Channel 18, and had been told that there were no dead dogs currently on the property, and that the living dogs were fine and had food and water.

Willoughby did admit some animals have died, however.

"I do know that one of the dogs had puppies, and they died, and the kids had buried them in their backyard, is what I was told," said Willoughby. "They were sick."

Although distraught neighbors have contacted the Carroll County Sheriff's Department to remove the dogs, another financial issue has kept the dogs in place. Sheriff Tony Burns said that in 2007 animal control was cut from the county's budget.

That's not the only issue.

"The other thing that we have going against us is that there are no shelters in Carroll County. So the issue becomes, even if we could pick the dogs up, where would we take them and who would pay for it?" asked Sheriff Burns.

The Sheriff's Department told Willoughby she has until Sept. 1 to remove the dogs.

If that doesn't happen, sheriffs said a report will be filed with the county prosecutor to press charges of neglect against Willoughby.

Willoughby said if no one can take the dogs today, she will have them euthanized.

UPDATE: 11:44 a.m. Sept. 1

Willoughby recently gave no-kill shelter owner Tricia Davis permission to come onto the property take all the animals to her shelter.

( Click here to read more about the rescue. )

Davis thanked neighbors and News Channel 18 for saving these dogs' lives.

"The minute it was on TV at 6:30 in the morning, people were calling, and that's what it takes, is somebody to take enough initiative to get something done," said Davis

Now the real recovery begins. Today the dogs will be vaccinated, cleaned and checked for fleas. Then they will be held for observation at Tricia's Dog House in Lafayette. After that, they'll be eligible for adoption.

If you are interested in adopting these animals, you can contact Tricia's Dog House at (765) 742-6605.

Neighbors, too.  Shame on them.

They know of an abandoned house, dogs locked in a kennel in back, and they leave the dogs there?!?  And feed them once a week?!?!

Once you know of the problem and police/animal control can't do anything about it.... nothing wrong with a bolt cutter and bringing the dogs back home or to a shelter on your own.

6 of the 10 dogs are dead as a result of apathy.

And I am reminded, on this holy day, of the sad story of Kitty Genovese. As you all may remember, a long time ago, almost thirty years ago, this poor soul cried out for help time and time again, but no person answered her calls. Though many saw, no one so much as called the police. They all just watched as Kitty was being stabbed to death in broad daylight. They watched as her assailant walked away. Now, we must all fear evil men. But there is another kind of evil which we must fear most, and that is the indifference of good men.

[Fjolnirsson]

Everyone involved needs to be horsewhipped.

[Viking]

Everyone involved needs to be horsewhipped.

I bet the dogs are really hungry too...

[BlueStarLizzard]

i wanna know who the naighbor was that agreed to feed/care for the dogs. the owner was stupid, yes, but i reserve judgement on weither she actually cared for the animals or not. obviously, she was not in the place to be able to take care of them and may have tried to the best she could under the cercumstances (as there was no local shelter to take the dogs in the first place)

but the naighbors should be held culpibal on animal abuse too. i would have raised holy hell after seeing the dogs left alone for a few days, not waited until multiple dogs died. seven months? WTH?!?!

[Seenterman]

Those neighbors are hypocrites. Oh yea they ack outraged when the media gets there but WTF where they doing for seven months.

[roo_ster]

Wouldn't have taken me that long to call the authorities.

[never_retreat]

I think at the minimum I would have used my foot to make them a nice dog house.

[BryanP]

$%^&*()

If I couldn't take care of my pets and couldn't arrange to have someone else take them in I'd put them down myself before I'd just abandon them to starvation.

Bastards.

[Balog]

$%^&*()

If I couldn't take care of my pets and couldn't arrange to have someone else take them in I'd put them down myself before I'd just abandon them to starvation.

Bastards.

This.

The original owners actually seem less culpable in this scenario, if a neighbor did agree to care for the dogs as they claim.

I used to live far out in the desert, at a place that was apparently very convenient to dump unwanted dogs. We had a lot of dogs get dumped, and the ones that lived turned feral and started killing livestock. A small group of them attacked my brothers once, and if it hadn't been for our own dog fighting them off my brothers would have been hurt badly, maybe even killed. I have no sympathy for cowards like this. If you can't care for the animal or find someone who can, give them a quick death. "Oh I could never bring myself to kill a dog, I'll just condemn it to a slow miserable death of starvation. It's better cause I won't have to see it." Effing cowards.