The animal shelter based in Lyndhurst has taken in 47 animals after they were seized from a single property. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.
Last Friday, animal control officers were dispatched to a property on Augusta Farms Road, after someone who purchased a dog there called in concerns about the animals' living conditions. The officers seized two dogs from inside a 90-degree vehicle with no food or water. Then, after searching the property with the Augusta County Sheriff's Office, they seized a total of 28 dogs, 13 cats, and six ducks. They also found 28 deceased animals.
Fifty-nine-year-old Carl Lentz has been charged with six counts of animal cruelty in the case.
The rescued animals were transported to an emergency shelter set up in a warehouse in Verona. Jon Hilbert is the director of the Shenandoah Valley Animal Services Center.
JON HILBERT: I had coordinated a vet to come out Saturday morning to assess all of the animals, and she did have to euthanize four kittens. … Overall, the dogs were very healthy. They were not socialized but friendly animals, and the only dog that needed any additional treatment was a Collie that had to have its leg amputated due to a really bad infection. The cats and the kittens, on the other hand, were not in the best of shape.
Hilbert said this is the second large seizure the shelter has received in the past year. He assumed the directorship last September.
In February of last year, the shelter closed for a week due to short staffing, as the News Leader reported. But Hilbert said the organization has recovered, and now has just two open positions. And they've received a lot of support over the past few days.
HILBERT: They can always donate dog food and blankets to the government center in Verona, or they can be dropped off at our shelter in Lyndhurst.
To learn more about the shelter and volunteer opportunities, visit svasc.net.
