Animal Neglect

I'm writing today about something I've seen. If you know me very well you know that I love watching Animal Planet and that I love animals. Today I went with my friend to a kennel to pick up a miniature Dachshund that was being given away. If you have ever been to a kennel, you know that they can be deplorable places.

What I saw today, absolutely broke my heart. Dogs matted, some with eye infections, some with insufficient shelter. I seriously shed a few tears, as did my mother and friend. When we went, we knew they had the miniature dachshund and a blind Boston terrier to give away. The Boston terriers eyes were filled with the "green goop" sign of an eye infection. The dogs in surrounding pens were matted so severely that you could barely tell what kind of dog it was.

I called the county sheriff's office to have them check into it (like PETA suggested). They called back and said that the dogs had water and food. The deputy then told me that the pens all had shelter in them (which is true, but it isn't sufficient shelter for the number of dogs in each pen). The owner of the kennel took the deputy out to see the Boston terrier and said they have medicine and are doctoring the eyes (the deputy didn't ask to see any medicine). He said that because they have food, water, and shelter there was nothing they can do about it. I think it's horrendous that the police didn't look into all of my complaint and that they didn't think that the neglect was anything to worry about.

I was able to take a few pictures on my phone while I was in the yard alone, but they aren't the best pictures and you can't see the severity of the matting. I just hope that PETA will do something on their part to insure that these dogs will have a good life. Attached are a couple of pictures that kind of show the matting, but since they are phone pictures they aren't the best.