HAMILTON COUNTY, Ohio — 38 dogs have been seized through recent animal welfare investigations, contributing to a total of 112 dogs that Cincinnati Animal CARE has received in just seven days, the shelter tells WCPO.
Because of the capacity crisis, Cincinnati Animal CARE is urgently seeking fosters, volunteers and adopters to relieve pressure on its facility. Click here for more information.
24 of the 38 dogs seized were taken from two separate Hamilton County properties over the past two days. Fourteen large shepherd-type dogs were taken from one property, while 10 dogs of varying sizes were taken from the other property, according to Cincinnati Animal CARE.
Because the dogs were seized during these operations, they cannot be adopted while they remain on investigation holds, something the shelter says contributes to its ongoing capacity crisis. The dogs cannot be put up for adoption until their legal status is resolved.
Cincinnati Animal CARE says the Hamilton County Dog Warden has responded to seven cases involving six or more dogs at a single property over the past three months. Back in August, the largest seizure in the shelter's history took place, with more than 150 animals taken in.
"These cases, along with numerous smaller cruelty and neglect investigations, are placing additional pressure on the Cincinnati Animal CARE shelter already operating without available kennel space," Cincinnati Animal CARE said in a statement sent to WCPO.
Cincinnati Animal CARE serves Hamilton County as the area's sole provider of animal services, operating the county's only open-intake animal shelter.
“People see an overcrowded shelter, but they don't always see what's happening in our neighborhoods that's contributing to it,” said Meaghan Colville, Chief Dog Warden and COO at Cincinnati Animal CARE.
