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Current diary entries    I    Past diary entries Doll's Diary Account by Doll Stanley, May 17, 2006 May 17th, 2006 It's 1:08 a.m. and I've just pulled in from transporting dogs to Chele in Starkville, who will get them to Columbus tomorrow morning for low cost spaying/neutering. I had a stop along the way in Eupora to pick up some pups from a cruelty case reported earlier today. A man reported that one of his neighbor's dogs had given birth to 16 pups. The mother was slowly bleeding to death over the first four weeks of the pups’ lives. As the pups began to die, and the man's child abused them, several were buried alive. Getting the case prosecuted will be difficult. Though the complainant witnessed the child's abuse, the horrific live burial of the dying puppies was revealed in passing by the abuser's wife, who laughed while "chatting" about the incidents. The day started off with caring for our recovering animals and pups, doing laundry and feeding everyone. I documented and named the seven pups rescued from a neglect case and the eight that Sonya, Heather and I rescued from beneath collector Bessie's house yesterday. At the time we removed 28 dogs, 10 rabbits and their babies, a hen and a Guinea Fowl from her home, there were six dogs absent. As most of our traps are still in use in New Orleans, the four we retain are all on-site at regional feeding stations where people have reported seeing injured and feral dogs. We intended to get them back to Bessie's to complete our aid for her animals, but an emergency call yesterday forced us to drop what we were doing and head to her community. Five of the dogs had attacked cattle across the road, maiming a cow and her calf. The neighbor's son had shot three of the dogs. We removed eight pups from beneath her mobile home and sought assistance from a neighbor who agreed to watch the two traps I pulled from the Vaiden truck stop last night to use at Bessie's. Sonya took them by on her way home this evening.  When Sonya and Heather arrived this morning we set up crates for all our dogs so that Orkin could spray the canine area for ticks. Heather and Sonya cleaned, and I returned urgent calls. I was preparing for the Board of Aldermen meeting in Winona at 5:00 for their discussion of a limit on pit bulls within city limits. As we have been involved in numerous complaints of neglect and fighting, winning two cases against one family who moved their dogs from Winona to Duck Hill, my voice was sought.  Edna Lee and I praised the Grenada Mayor for his willingness to improve animal protection measures in the City. Currently, no one at their shelter does adoptions because the ACO is in the field and convicts maintain the shelter, but Edna will soon begin aiding with adoptions.  I followed up on yesterday’s horse calls, arranging for Dr. Redding to accompany Cyd Dunlap of OLHS and I to revisit the seven horses I looked at in Lafayette County last Saturday. We'll be making the trip tomorrow. Action on MS SS: 97-41-2 (the seizure law) requires a vet’s input. We participated in the "Big Fix" for cats at their shelter last week. SPAN, of which I'm an auxiliary board member, arranged for the Humane Alliances rig to stop at willing MS shelters this month. Next week I'll be helping with the event in Cleveland. Of course I'll carry work with me and utilize their office. One of our traps and some of our crates are on loan this week to capture cats for spaying next week. The King's are aiding nearly 40 cats left to fend for themselves after the death of their guardian/collector. This afternoon, a woman called for aid with a really sick case. When she moved into the house she's currently in she witnessed a neighbor raping his dog. She reported it, but the police only spoke with him. Since the incident, the neighbor's dog has been relocated and he has twice filed nuisance charges alleging that her two dogs disturb him. She declared that she takes her dogs in at 7:00 nightly and keeps them in until the morning. According to her account, the judge cleared the courtroom for the second hearing, leaving only himself, the affiant, the defendant, and the Mayor. She alleged that she asked the man if the real problem wasn't that she was black and he didn't want her as his neighbor. Reportedly he responded that it was so. She also reported that the judge suspended a $500.00 fine and six months in jail for the defendant, charged her the $80.00 court fee and told her to do something about her dogs within 30 days. Reportedly a man who earlier caught the affiant in an act with his dog has left the area and only rumor remains. I suggested that a civil rights attorney might be in order, and I'll check with the PA to see if she'll pursue a warrant for an examination of the dog. For weeks we've been up from dawn to the wee hours. We're trying to get to at a cat who's been up in a tree for days. Emergency services don't respond to such matters because of the cost and tie up of personnel and equipment. AC went out, but had no ideas. As I told Dr. Katz last night, there's simply too much too tell. There were 19 calls just today, including one from a woman wanting to know what she could do about a neighbor who shot her pit bulls. I really wanted to tell her she was totally responsible for the death of her dogs as her account revealed that she allowed the boys to walk the dogs "on thick chains" to the quarry, where they decided to let them off the chains. As dogs will do when they spot chickens, the dogs went on a rampage, killing 21 of another woman's chickens, which is why she shot them. The unthinking guardian filed an affidavit for animal cruelty, but as I advised her, the law clearly states that an attacking animal can be destroyed. As outraged as we may feel over the death of the dogs, I'll honestly say that my distress is with the guardian who failed to protect her dogs. Our neighbor’s dogs came down and attacked Nanny once, Ivan an earlier time, and yet another time their pigs attacked Natalie. As I raced to save Ivan from "Teddy Bear" (more like “Grizzly Bear”), I was pretty wild myself. I did fight off the pigs with a branch from the pasture. They were ripping Natalie's ears and ramming her. The incident with Nanny put a stop to their animals coming down. They witnessed the attack themselves, and one on another neighbor's dog. They were shamed into putting up low pulse electric fencing.  Sunday we placed Othello and one of our new pups. It was disheartening to have so many people look at the large group of animals we took to adoption day and for only two of them to have found homes. A screaming kitten met me at the gate last night. No question she was abandoned during my absence. She certainly is grateful for her food. When Sonya asked when I'd be picking up supplies this week I responded, "sometime between midnight and dawn as I roll me one of the Super- W-Ws.” Thanks to Chele and Shelby for taking on some of our recovering pups, and seeing our dogs on to Columbus for S/N. Without their help we would be working from dawn to dawn. I have to check emails now, check the pups to see if they need clean blankets, put on another load of laundry, and steal away to snuggle with my Cinderella for a bit of shut eye. Doll Stanley