It’s the height of summer – a time when our shelter is already full – and the calls just keep coming. Law enforcement agencies are reaching out daily – a spike from even a few weeks ago – and our rescue team has been mobilizing quickly and repeatedly when animals need us most.
Our kennels are full, but the calls keep coming in. This time it was to rescue 30 dogs from an unlicensed breeder. We needed to get these dogs out. We figured out a plan. Our team got on the road, and we brought the dogs safely to the shelter.
Yesterday, just months after helping rescue more than 100 dogs from a puppy mill in Boone County, the ARL team was back on the same property … this time working with authorities to free 46 MORE dogs and puppies from the cycle of commercial breeding.
Behind the eyes of many of the adorable puppies selling for thousands of dollars hides the horrors of the dogs they leave behind at some of Iowa’s worst puppy mills. These breeders, many operating illegally without licenses, care more about profits than the dogs.
When our Animal Welfare & Response Team was called to assist the Decatur County Sheriff in removing multiple dogs trapped in a filthy trailer, they arrived to see puppies poking their heads out of broken windows, looking for a way out.
A small dog curled up by the train tracks. Cold and alone. Just skin and bones. Thankfully a good Samaritan spotted Ryder and stopped their car to help. Up close, it was clear he needed more assistance than they could give, so they bundled him in a towel and rushed him to the Animal Rescue League.
The odds were stacked against them. The four tiny puppies had just lost their mother to critical injuries related to their birth, and now they were alone and helpless – too small to eat on their own or even control their own body temperature. We knew they would require specialized nursery care just to survive.
When Bella arrived, it was clear she was suffering. Her skin was deeply infected and almost all of her fur was gone. Her exposed skin, from her face to her swollen paws, was red, scabby and painful to the touch. Our veterinarian said there was almost no healthy skin on her body. Her eyes were also infected and cloudy, and she bumped into walls as she entered our exam room.
When the four orphaned kittens looked up at us with their tiny blue eyes, it was clear they needed help. They were dehydrated, underweight and cold to the touch. We were told they were found all alone in a barn after their mother had been hit by a car. They had nowhere else to turn.
Our Animal Welfare & Response Team works tirelessly, partnering with law enforcement and other agencies across the state to respond when animals need us most. So when we received an urgent call for help with a situation involving dozens of dogs at a commercial breeder two hours away, we immediately began the hours of preparation needed for a rescue of that magnitude.
