LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Animal Control officers have cited three people on La Salle Avenue in South Louisville after eight animals were taken from a home Wednesday evening.
They showed up after someone reported two dogs left outside in the cold, according to Louisville Metro Animal Services. Officers found them chained with no food or water.
Inside, they found four more dogs, and two cats living in “deplorable conditions.”
“Debris everywhere, there were feces on the floor, it was not good,” said Animal Control Officer Heather Harris.
She said one dog was “definitely thing with some ribs showing,” and another had a tumor.
“That owner said they just didn't have the money to get the animal treated.”
Officers went back to the house on Tuesday to talk to the third owner, who surrendered his two pit bulls and a hound to LMAS.
“Y'all take every dog from me,” he told officers. Harris said it’s the second time since 2018 that he’s had dogs taken away.
“You could tell that the people were trying to care for them as best as they could, that they were trying to love them. It just seems like one of these situations where they got in over their heads,” Harris explained.
Two other women who lived in the home surrendered their dogs, as well. The cats belonged to the community, according to LMAS officials.
Four of the dogs were pit bulls. Harris does not believe they were using the animals for dog fighting.
The dog owner told officers his pets were healthy and he was planning on taking at least one of them to the vet soon.
“He was just not able to care for them the way they needed to be cared,” Harris explained.
She emphasized the responsibility of owning a pet.
“If a person is thinking about getting a dog, you need to make sure you have enough money and financial means to care for that dog.”
The three owners will be in court next month, cited with animal cruelty. What happens next will be up to prosecutors and a judge.
The animals will be evaluated by LMAS before determining next steps in the adoption process.
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