Kennel owner allowed his dogs to starve and now faces criminal charges, authorities said.
Chris Eadie, owner of the kennel, was found with 70 malnourished dogs on his property when sheriff's deputies visited Friday to follow up on an anonymous tip. At least five dogs died.
Hart County Sheriff Mike Cleveland said Monday he isn't sure what Eadie will be charged with..
"I'm pushing for a felony," Cleveland said. "The way the law reads, it could be a misdemeanor, believe it or not.".
Authorities then obtained a search warrant and searched the area..
"It was just a filth hole," Cleveland told the Athens Banner-Herald. Some dogs, he said, were chained to walls with no roof overhead..
In all, deputies found about 70 malnourished dogs of various breeds including Boxers, Rottweilers, Huskies, German Sheperds. In addition to the three animals initially found dead, two other dogs died before deputies and aid workers could take the animals to area rescue missions..
The surviving dogs will remain at the multiple rescue missions until they are available for adoption.
Adoption agencies and shelters from all over started the reach out by taking in the dogs and nursing them back to health. Agencies desire to get the animals into good homes but want to get the canines on track first. Officials believe they'll be up to speed in a week, but encourage people to personally contact the shelters.
When the deputies arrived they found the body of a dog at the locked gate. A walk around the chain link enclosure revealed two more bodies.
After getting a search warrant, the deputies, accompanied by Sheriff Mike Cleveland, returned to the scene where they found more than 60 starving dogs and puppies. Most were chained inside open kennels with no food, no water and no shelter.
Local veterinarian Dr. Bob Mauldin sent hundreds of pounds of food for the skeletal animals and by midday they had received their first meal in some time. While Mauldin could not say exactly how long the dogs had been without food, he did say, "There was some time involved."
The kennel is licensed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture. Mike Lurey, a DOA representative at the scene said the state was making an effort to contact kennels in the Atlanta area to find places for the surviving dogs.
Next morning, Dec. 30, the dogs were still at the kennel, attended by Sheriff's deputies around the clock. If they left, said Cleveland, a new warrant would have to be obtained.
DOA Commissioner Tommy Irwin said inspectors went to the kennel on Nov. 18 and Dec. 2, but no one was on the premises and the gate was locked. "We had no idea what was going on," he said.
Late in the afternoon of Dec. 30, Cleveland announced that DOA had located several shelters and at 9 a.m. Dec. 31, the pick up began.
Representatives came from humane societies and animal shelters in Stephens and Elbert counties, the North East Georgia Animal Shelter, Atlanta Humane Society, a German shepherd rescue group and the Tri-County, S.C., animal shelter.
Watching as dogs were loaded, sometimes unwillingly, into special transport vans, Cleveland said the owner signed a release Dec. 30. "Hart County has custody now," he said.
By early evening, all the animals had been picked up, the kennel was locked and the officers gone.
The dogs would be inoculated and their diets readjusted, Cleveland said, once they are ready, they can be adopted. However, just as with any shelter dog, the new owner must sign a contract to have the dog spayed or neutered.
The puppies will not be put up for adoption until they are eight weeks old, he said.
The kennel bred boxers, dobermans, huskies, German shepherds, Weimaraners and other breeds.
Cleveland said Eadie has been in the hospital in Anderson, S.C., and relatives were supposed to be taking care of the dogs.
The Sheriff said Eadie will be charged when he leaves the hospital and is back in Georgia. Cleveland said he is considering a felony charge, but it will be at least a misdemeanor. For a misdemeanor, Eadie could be fined $1,000 and serve up to 12 months in jail.
In addition to the three dogs initially found dead, two more died after the rescue was underway - a boxer and a weimaraner that died while being accessed by a veterinarian.
More than 100 phone offers of help were received by the Sheriff, along with 1,000 pounds of dog food left at the office. Cleveland said the food was distributed among the agencies picking up the dogs. He said he thanks all the concerned citizens for their phone calls and overwhelming response to help the dogs.
If you are interested in adopting you can contact any of the agencies below. There is an adoption fee and all pet owners are urged to spay or neuter the animal.
Atlanta Humane Society- (404) 875-2600 ext-219 -- Curtis Fisher
Elbert County Animal Control- (706) 283- 5054
German Shepard Rescue of Georgia- (770) 409-1515
Stephens County Animal Rescue- (706) 779-5917--- June Thompson
North East Georgia Animal Shelter- (706) 356-5363--- Laura Lewis
Tri County- (770) 409-1575--- Terese Aleman References« Back to Search Results
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