Stacy Planko, New Mexico
Rescued Dogs Abandoned in House
One summer day, I was driving home when I noticed all the cars in front of me swinging wide into the other lane as if to avoid something. That something was a small lost dog. I didn’t care that it was rush-hour or that cars were honking—I put my flashers on, opened the door and went to collect her. She growled at me, so I got a blanket from the car, covered her and was able to pick her up and load her inside. `
She had no collar or tags—not to mention she was matted and dirty. I began driving around looking for joggers and kids to ask if they knew who she was. I saw an older woman working in her yard and asked her if she recognized the dog. Her face lit up and she said yes. She told me that she was not the owner, but just taking care of a few dogs in the house across the street while the owners were moving.
I offered to carry the dog to the house for her and when she opened the front door the stench of urine and feces filled the air. The house was empty, the carpet pulled up, the power off and the back door open. The entire home was a make-shift dog house and looked like a dump. She said the owner was planning on coming back to get the eight dogs after she was all moved in, but it had been over a month since she had last heard from her.
I called animal control as I felt the conditions these dogs were forced to live in were horrible, not to mention that they were most likely abandoned. Animal control contacted the owner, and found out that she did not want the dogs anymore. They were placed up for adoption and all found loving homes.