Hoarding - 47 dogs Waynesburg, PA (US) Date: Jan 7, 2005 Disposition: Alleged Case Images: 1 files available Alleged: Lillian Spear Timothy J. Martin Lois Spear Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

Case ID: 3534 Classification: Hoarding Animal: rodent/small mammal (pet), dog (non pit-bull), cat View more cases in PA (US) « Back to Search Results Login to Watch this Case

Police officers and animal control specialists confiscated more than 50 animals Friday that were all living in a small house on Lincoln Street.

Three adults shared the home with 47 dogs, eight cats and at least three guinea pigs. Officers could be seen covering their faces and struggling to deal with the stench emanating from the house as they tried to collect the animals.

"We're standing about 20 feet from the house and we can still smell it," borough Manager Jed Howard said as he assessed the situation from the sidewalk outside the structure at 9 Lincoln St.

Howard condemned the building, and borough police officers ordered the three people living there to leave before the end of the day. Lillian Spear, 46, Timothy J. Martin, 44, and Lois Spear, 37, all face charges of animal cruelty and related offenses.

The three rented the house off Doug Hoskins, and they have been living in the two-story home for about a month. Hoskins said he had no idea his tenants had animals, and only learned of the problem when he received a call about a week ago from the state dog warden.

Animal control officers became familiar with the three people when they lived in Brave. Greene County Humane Society confiscated a few of their dogs while they lived there, but obviously not all. They apparently maintained a pet collection and they took most of the animals with them when they relocated to the borough.

"They seem to be collectors," said Jane Gapen, executive director of Greene County Humane Society. Gapen referred to the syndrome in which a person accumulates more animals than he can possibly care for. On average, the humane society responds to one animal hoarding case a year, Gapen said.

Often, the animals in a collection are malnourished and diseased. However, the dogs and cats that officers recovered from the house on Lincoln Street appeared to be relatively well-fed.

"Yes, they were all fed. They were just living in those deplorable conditions," Gapen said.

Gapen said that animal waste was found throughout the house. To combat the odors, officers asked to borrow breathing apparatus units from Waynesburg/Franklin Township Fire Department so they could searched the residence for animals.

John C. Thomas, the local dog warden, officials from the humane society and borough police officers managed to recover all of the animals, with the exception of three cats, which should be captured soon. The animals are now at the humane society on Jefferson Road.

Many of the animals will have to be euthanized. Gapen said the dogs and cats will be examined by a veterinarian and those that are healthy and friendly enough may be offered for adoption.

The animal owners will face charges of animal cruelty, running an illegal kennel and having no licenses or rabies vaccinations on the dogs. It is against the borough's laws to own more than three pets at a time, so they also will face citations under that ordinance.

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