A man and a woman from Sumner County, Tennessee, have been charged with animal cruelty after Portland Police found multiple puppies locked in a cage, suffering from heat exhaustion.
After receiving an animal complaint, deputies arrived at the home to find seven puppies who were not even two weeks old, locked in a cage for hours at a time without food or water, nor their mother’s milk.
The officers immediately moved the cage out of the sunlight and into the shade to try and cool them down. More than half of the litter was not moving, so the officers then brought them into their air conditioned patrol car.
They tried to get the mama dog to feed them, but she appeared to have mastitis and was unable to nurse.
The dogs were brought to animal control, where they doused the puppies with water. Unfortunately, one puppy didn’t have a heartbeat, and officers were unable to revive him, even with chest compressions.
Sumner County Jail Booking via Fox 17
The surviving puppies will be cared for by a local animal hospital.
The two homeowners, James Null and Crystal Williams, have since been arrested and charged with animal cruelty, dog running at-large, and no rabbles vaccinations. They are scheduled to appear in court this week.
H/T to Fox 17.
