Conclusion of the 34 Dogs Rescued
I have been reflecting on all that occurred with the 35 hoarded dogs in the Michigan City home a few weeks ago (July 31, 2018). I want to again thank everyone who helped: the Michigan City dog warden and volunteers, the Michigan City Police Department, the Michigan City Fire Department, the staffs of the Michiana Humane Society and the LaPorte County Animal Shelter, as well as the numerous rescue groups helping to place the dogs.
After the initial assessment of the dogs on site, they were fully examined again within a couple of days.
Specifically, we at Michigan City Animal Hospital treated 23 of them, while the remaining 11 were treated by the LaPorte Animal Shelter. Each received all core vaccinations (Rabies, Distemper/Parvo, Bordetella, and Influenza), flea treatments, and/or antibiotics as needed. All of the dogs were given allergy medications and about 12 of them were treated for ear infections. Anti-anxiety medications were given as needed.
We ran blood work on each adult dog to make sure there weren’t any underlying health issues and then proceeded to give heartworm medications. We also checked for intestinal parasites – all dogs were negative.
Sixteen of the dogs underwent spay/neuter procedures here at Michigan City Animal Hospital over the course of a few days, and we paid to have the other seven spayed/neutered thru the Humane Society. In addition, we performed eight dental procedures with two of the dogs needing full mouth extractions. Two females needed mammary tumors removed. This was done along with their spays. One of those females had some health problems after surgery due to her age and condition and had to be hospitalized on IV fluids and antibiotics for three days. She also had a previously broken back and severe skin problems. By the time she left our hospital, her skin was cleared up, her bloodwork was pretty much back to normal, and she is doing great with her foster owner!
As deplorable and unhealthy as the situation was for both the humans and dogs, I will say that the man and woman living there cannot be healthy. I would ask that you pray for them and hope they receive the mental and physical help they need. While I’m not excusing his action, I do realize there are sometimes two sides to the story and we don’t know what lead up to this situation. We need to care about them, as well as the pets we work with.
The dogs are all very sweet and most should be completely normal, wonderful pets. I want to wish every new owner the best with their new dog. Both the new owners and the dogs have been greatly blessed by the collaborative rescue efforts that occurred during these last few weeks.
Sincerely, Dr. Rex Bailey
While this was an extreme and high-profile situation, Michigan City Animal Hospital often engages in companionate care for abused or neglected pets and orphaned wildlife.
If you would like to support us in this endeavor for future cases, there are two ways you can help. Michigan City Animal Hospital has partnered with the Veterinary Care Charitable Fund and Mission Rabies.
- Please consider donating to our Veterinary Care Charitable Fund through the AVMA. Michigan City Animal Hospital’s VCCF allows for tax free donations to be used for these special animal care needs. More information can be found on our website at https://www.mcanimalhospital.com/donate
- Michigan City Animal Hospital is also involved with Mission Rabies. More than 59,000 people die from rabies every year. The highest concentration of these deaths occur in underdeveloped nations where access to the rabies vaccine is scarce or prohibitively expensive. Through our partnership with this program, for every vaccine that your pet receives at our hospital, an animal in an underdeveloped nation will be vaccinated against rabies. This will ultimately save the lives of not only that animal, but also people, especially children, who are at a greater risk of being bitten by an animal that has rabies. Just by vaccinating your own pet at our hospital, you are contributing to this noble cause.
