Pearl River County Animal Control rescued over 20 animals this week after discovering they were severely neglected.
County Animal Control Officer Danny Joe Slade received a call about animal neglect at 133 Luther Davis Road in Picayune two months ago, but when he went to the property, he was unable to locate the owner, he said.
Pearl River County Supervisors Farron Moeller and Malcolm Perry also received numerous complaints about the property and passed them along, Slade said.
Nearby residents informed Slade that the animals had been removed from the home. But, on Oct. 6, he received a call the animals had been returned to the mobile home on that property, Slade said.
When he arrived at the property on Oct. 7, the landowner, Mark Gibson, gave Slade permission to enter the property and remove the animals, Slade said.
Upon entering the home, Slade said he found six hogs locked in a back room of the mobile home, with trash spread throughout.
The identity of the renter of the home and owner of the animals is still being sought and will be cited for neglect and abuse, Slade said.
In a separate incident on Oct. 6, county animal control was dispatched to 29 Ovelle Lee Road in Poplarville after receiving a call about a woman hoarding dogs, Slade said.
He also heard about the issue from Board Vice President Hudson Holliday.
Slade said he was unable to contact the owner earlier that week.
Upon arrival to the property on Oct. 6, he saw several dogs looking out the open window, allowing him to look inside where he saw “beyond deplorable” conditions.
The owner was later identified as Betty Burns, of Poplarville, who had been cited twice for similar incidents.
Burns arrived to the residence and told Slade there were seven or eight dogs inside the home, he said.
He was then able to open the door and look inside the home, at which time he removed the animals for their safety, Slade said.
Burns signed a release relinquishing the dogs to the Pearl River County Animal Shelter, Slade said.
The Pearl River County SPCA arrived and once inside the home, Slade said they found 20 dogs of different breeds, some as young as 10 weeks.
Some of them were suffering from “severe health issues” while others were aggressive, Slade said.
There was a heavy odor of animal urine and feces in the residence, in which Burns was currently residing, Slade said.
The animals’ food was dumped on the floor and water was inaccessible to the pets, Slade said.
Burns told Slade some of the 7-months-old dogs were born in that house, he said.
She was issued citations for neglect and abuse.
Slade said Moeller, Perry and Holliday were extremely helpful in both cases, pushing him to use whatever legal means necessary to remove those animals from their poor conditions.