Regular readers will remember Sheriff Sam Parker in Chesterfield Co, SC on whose watch the ACOs were reportedly shooting dogs to death in the landfill, hitting cats in the head with pipes and using up euthanasia drugs by some means other than pet euthanasia. This week a tip lead the sheriff’s office to investigate a property in the county where 2 dozen dogs were found locked in cages, chained or roaming loose. The dogs were reportedly in rough shape with overgrown toenails, contaminated drinking water and at least one dog was yelping in pain.
“It is disgusting, these dogs are walking around in about 2-3 inches of their own feces and urine,” said [volunteer] Joy Young.
[…]
“Their pads have been ripped open from walking on wire for so many years,” said Young.
Animal control personnel from the sheriff’s office went out to inspect.
But inspection was apparently the only thing on the menu that day because the ACOs left the dogs there. The sheriff’s office said it would take days before they might get around to actually helping the dogs. Well, at least it’s not the worst abuse and neglect case they’ve ever seen:
The volunteers say they were told this was the worst case of abuse and neglect ever seen.
D’oh! Temperatures have dipped to around freezing at night in Chesterfield Co. I don’t know that a few inches of feces and urine makes surviving the night any easier. It makes one wonder how long it takes the sheriff’s office to take action regarding pets whose state of neglect is not the worst they’ve ever seen.
Another reason why people disrespect law enforcement agencies. This is pathetic. They can’t send one officer out there with a bunch of rescue volunteers and get those dogs out of there? Pathetic.
The report and the video shows dogs running loose that are protective of some puppies. And then there’s..I’m guessing here.. “Give the owner a chance to be served with the paper work” This is not good. I live in NC and the ACO’s here have no clue what the laws are to protect animals. So, I bet they have to do their homework… IDIOTS
The VERY LEAST they could have done would have been to leave them food and clean water–did they even do that?
ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF MAN’S INHUMANITY! I AM SO DISGUSTED! IT JUST PROVES THAT THE WRONG PEOPLE ARE IN CHARGE AND NEED TO BE REPLACED!
I am too disgusted to speak. What are we living in some sort of 3rd world country?
there is no humanity in the humane race anymore…those that do not report abuse or choose to ignore it are just as guilty as the abusers…and those of you that think you and your kids are safe around animals abusers, guess again…look at the stats-don’t think that these people have any regard for the human race either….god bless those poor dogs and someone in that county needs to get off there ass and do something, anything….
What the hell is wrong with these “people”. They are disgusting. Help the animals for God’s sake!!!!!!!! Don’t just leave them there.
What can we do about this? This is so awful for those poor animals! Where can we write? How can we help? Is there a rescue organization in the area which could come to these animal’s aid? Please post something on the web so that those of us who are touched by this horiffic story can help! Thank you!
If you wish to contact the sheriff’s office, their number is 843-623-2101.
Too many animal pounds do this. Have seen them leave dogs with a dog house too small for the dog to get into and some dogs with no shelter at all (Hammond, Louisiana). They are NOT doing their job as people expect them to.
Contact: http://www.foxcharlotte.com/ They have reported on this situation before and would be interested.
Call the Sherrif and ask he helps these suffering dogs: http://www.chesterscsheriff.com/
Here is a link to the section of the South Carolina law pertaining to animals:
http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t47c001.php
It appears that animal cruelty is a misdemeanor with a slap on the wrist, however whoever horribly tortures an animal could be convicted of a felony. The law, however, seems to leave that up to interpretation. To us, these conditions would constitute torture, but to people who think animals are just “things”, they might only charge the accused with misdemenors.
There is also this section:
“When a person arrested is, at the time of the arrest, in charge of an animal, an agent of the South Carolina Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or of any society incorporated for that purpose, may take charge of the animal and deposit the animal in a safe place of custody or deliver the animal into the possession of the police or sheriff of the county or place where the arrest was made, who shall assume the custody of the animal; and all necessary expenses incurred in taking charge of the animal shall be a lien thereon. ”
And this little blurb:
“Any person violating the laws in relation to cruelty to animals may be arrested and held, without warrant, in the same manner as in the case of persons found breaking the peace.”
And this interesting paragraph:
”
The person making the arrest, with or without warrant, shall use reasonable diligence to give notice to the owner of the animals found in the charge or custody of the person arrested, if the person is not the owner, and shall care and provide properly for the animals. The person making such arrest shall have a lien on the animals for the expense of such care and provision. But if such person making the arrest be an agent of the South Carolina Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or other society incorporated for that purpose, the provisions of Section 47-1-120 shall apply in lieu of the provisions of this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an animal may be seized preceding an arrest and pursuant to Section 47-1-150″
So it sounds like they can just arrest the person and take the animals right then and there without a warrant if its bad enough. This leads me to believe that the animal control officers are just apathetic about the whole situation. The State law allowing them to take action is there. They just have to use it.
Can anyone say UNEMPLOYED, or as Donald Trump would say, “YOUR ARE FIRED!” Course ignorance breeds ignorance what else should we expect from them all.
Hell they probably marry their kin. ha ha lol
Animals need to have rights and police need to be more responsible. You eathier have compassion or u dont, its not something u pretend to have. A police officer should have compassion but I guess thats y they r so corupt and disloyal to the badge they carry cuz now and days no one can trust them. Its rare to see a police man that cares. Sad but true. Tt
I am extremely against animal rights. I am for animal WELFARE. Rights for animals are a very tricky subject, and it can lead to a dangerous road. People say dogs and cats should have the “right” to live. Well, what about the cows and chickens and pigs we consume in vast amounts? Should they have a “right” to live too? Should this right even extend to insects? (This is a real discussion they were having on an animal rights forum I browsed). Should deer have a “right” to live, and not be hunted (and thus further overpopulate already overpopulated regions, leading them to starve to death for lack of food, since there are no natural predators to keep them in check)? Now, I can’t eat beef or pork because of stomach problems, but I do love chicken and turkey, and venison is darn tasty, plus I need the protein in my diet that I get from meat. Everyone’s bodies are different, and not everyone can survive on tofu.
Giving animals “rights” won’t only affect the meat and fur industries, it will also greatly affect pet ownership as we know it. It starts with breed bans. We all hate those, except HSUS and PeTA who have publicly admitted to wanting pit bulls dead.
Then came Mandator Spay/Neuter Legislation. If any of us here read KC Dog Blog, we all know how well that works. It’s costly and causes more death in shelters.
Then came legislation trying to outlaw/regulate chaining/tethering for dogs. Yes there are people who leave dogs neglected on chains for their whole lives. There are probably an equal amount of people who leave them in pens, or in fenced yards, or even in dark, dank basments. The chain/tether is a tool, and anti-chaining laws outlaw a tool without adressing the real problem, which is the fact that there are people who lack compassion/education/basic human decency. There were also laws that sought to regulate crating (also a tool, which can be used/abused as the person sees fit, it is not the CAUSE of abuse). I don’t think those laws were passed, but I could be wrong.
Then came legislation seeking to ban/regulate the cropping of ears and docking of tails. When done properly, these procedures are quite humane (although cropping of ears is mostly cosmetic, docking of tails can and does prevent painful injuries in thin-tailed breeds). There was REAL LEGISLATION in Pennsylvania that sought to outlaw cropping/docking, and even made it a CRIME TO OWN a dog who was cropped/docked unless you could prove it was done by a licensed veterinarian. Thank god it didn’t get passed. What if somebody had adopted a dog from a shelter with an unknown background who’s ears had already been cropped? How could anyone possible prove WHO cropped that dog’s ears? This law would have cause a lot of needless death.
Then game the “guardianship” language. I am NOT a guardian to my dog, I am my dog’s OWNER. Yes, I do think animals should have a different property classification than a chair, but being an owner of a dog, I have property rights, such as due process, that I quite enjoy having. Guardianship, while it sounds all happy and pretty, seeks to strip pet owners of those rights.
Animals don’t and can’t have rights if we wish to continue sharing our lives with them. As beings that understand right and wrong, it is our duty to care for them properly, and to give our meat animals a humane existence and a humane death before they end up on our plates. And I do quite enjoy having dogs and cats as pets, and I really would rather Animal Rights Activists not get their way (because they want pet ownership to die out just because some people cruel to animals). I’ve seen it on Animal Rights forums. They have pets, but they call them “the friend that has to live with me”. I will fight against their ideals just as hard as they fight against mine.
Thank you for sharing that…
i just finished sending an e-mail to the charlotte news….i hope they can do something…..i live in ontario canada so not much a can do but share and e-mail…..
without being very religous at all, I believe in respect and I am pretty sure even Jesus weeps over this travesty!
The police are obviously too lazy to get their boots dirty.
This is appalling. I hope now that people know about this something can be done. This is just heart breaking.
INTOLERABLE . HAGAN ALGO
whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
dats reallyt bad and evil no comment
What happen to the dogs? Were they rescued?