Getting Dogs Off Chains

Dear Friends of Guardians,

While Guardians routinely serves animals in many ways, the biggest recent news is Guardians' urgent deployment to Mississippi to help 200 dogs whose large numbers resulted from uncontrolled breeding among the same dogs already on the property over many years.

An initially small number of dogs gradually exploded in numbers due to a lack of spay/neuter and proper care over a decade or more.

Arriving at the property at the break of dawn, Guardians worked with Chief Jason Lessel, North MS Animal Care & Control Association, and Lee County Animal Control, Lee County, Mississippi, who discovered this horrifying situation and initiated this rescue action for the dogs.

The situation was dire—looking at the untreated injuries and condition of these dogs was enough to make you cry... these dogs were in a desperate situation, and we had to act fast due to frigid temperatures there,

There were dogs everywhere, in below freezing conditions and confused by the unfamiliar noise, action and faces. We can only imagine what was in their minds as this intense scene unfolded.

Many of the dogs were lab-type mixes, ranging in age and temperament. While several were in fair physical condition, the sheer number of animals and the conditions they were living in had made it impossible to provide proper care, sanitation, and daily oversight. Many of the dogs needed long-delayed veterinary care. Many were pregnant, the ongoing cause of the exploding number of dogs there. Many gave birth just days after being removed from the property. Those babies would have struggled just as hundreds before them did.

It was hard to imagine these dogs having survived for so long with no real shelter or care. It's safe to assume that over the years, some did not.

Working with rescue/adoption partners, Guardians took the dogs to a staging area to have their condition assessed, where we dealt with the most urgent medical cases and began vetting and removing dogs and connecting them with our rescue partners to continue the job of getting the animals healthy and ready for adoption into new safe, happy lives.

Our Guardians team also searched the property for newborn puppies, finding a litter of five and a litter of six—thank goodness they were not left alone to freeze.

Because of the support of donors like you, we were able to go to Mississippi to tackle this huge rescue, and to bring a number of the dogs still unclaimed by adoption partners to Guardians' Kentucky foster location for medical care, as we work to locate additional partners to take in the remaining dogs for preparation for adoption.

With all the dogs finally off the property, connecting with more organizations to take in the remaining dogs has been and remains a real challenge. As we write this, we still have 5 sweet dogs in foster, and are reaching out widely to find more partners and a path to moving them closer toward their new happy lives.  If you are part of such a group or can connect us with an organization you know personally, you can do that at info@guardiansofrescue.org, and thank you!

In the end, despite the previous suffering and the almost impossible task of getting each dog safe, removed and healthy, every dog who left that unhappy situation since Day One of Guardians' presence will soon know what it's like to live in a warm house, lounge on a couch and be pampered and loved.

Thanks for being an important part of it.

This is why we always say,

Together we save them,

All of Us at Guardians of Rescue

Links:

• Guardians website
• Guardians YouTube Channel