24 dogs among animal seized in raid

CHARLESTON – A raid led to the seizure of 24 dogs, a boa constrictor, a goat, a cat, chickens, pheasants – even a tarantula – from a home on Garland Center Road.

With help from the Bangor Humane Society, the state removed the animals Friday from “dirty” and “disgusting” living conditions after state officials received an anonymous complaint.

“When we got there, what they told us from the outside was true,” said Jennifer Howlett, humane agent with the animal welfare program in the state Department of Agriculture. A search warrant was obtained and the animals were taken from the home Friday afternoon.

The name of the animals’ owner was not released. The case will be referred to the Penobscot County District Attorney’s Office.

“They’re starving,” Humane Society adoption counselor Amy Gentle said Saturday, as she walked past a kennel where one of the dogs, his ribs showing, devoured a bowl of food. “They haven’t stopped eating since they got here.”

All of the dogs, including rat terriers, Labs, hounds, and German short-haired pointers, have worms and were dehydrated. An elderly English setter and a pointer with swollen front ankles and open cuts had to be taken to the emergency veterinary clinic for treatment.

There was some breeding of the dogs going on at the home, but it’s unknown if the owner had a breeding license.

“They’re not in horrible condition,” Gentle said of the majority of the animals.

Billy the goat was lying in a kennel near the rear of the humane society Saturday afternoon, and raised his head as people walked by. He had been found outside the home tied up with a chain.

The dogs were kept mostly in crates indoors, or in outdoor cages. The home looked “extremely nice” architecturally, but was “disgusting” inside, according to the Humane Society employees.

“Most of [the animals] were poor in body condition,” Howlett said Sunday.

A litter of rat terrier puppies, approximately 6 or 7 weeks old, was kept in a playpen in the middle of the kitchen, according to Gentle. The bottom of the pen, similar to the outdoor kennel where some of the other dogs were kept, was blanketed in feces, she said.

During the seizure, officials also found a dead dog in an outdoor trashcan.

In addition, there were 12 or 15 dead birds in an outdoor coop where the pheasants were kept.

“The chickens were in the garage,” Gentle said.

The dogs, under stress from hunger, thirst and illness, had made paths from excessive pacing around the feces that lined their living quarters.

“I didn’t see any dog food,” Gentle said, recalling what was found at the property. “No cat food.”

The owner has turned many of the animals over to the Humane Society, but has requested that some be returned.

The 6-foot red-tail boa constrictor has been temporarily taken in by a Humane Society employee who has the equipment and knowledge to take care of the snake.

As for the tarantula, which is illegal to own in Maine without a permit, Gentle said they will treat it to the best of their ability.

“Fortunately, all these animals have been wicked friendly,” Gentle said.

Gentle and Bangor Humane Society adoption and volunteer services coordinator Rochelle Black noted that they’ve seen an increase in the number of animal cruelty and abuse cases in the past few years.

“I think that people are more likely to call now because they see something being done about it,” Black said.

“But there’s still lots the state doesn’t know about,” Gentle added.