Rescue groups step in after 162 dogs found in metro Atlanta house

ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. — Authorities received a 911 call about possible dog fighting inside a Rockdale County home Wednesday.

When deputies, animal control and code enforcement officers showed up at the home off Lance Circle, they didn’t find any mistreated animals, but they did find 162 of them.

Rockdale County spokesman Jorge Diez told AJC.com they found the small dogs being kept inside the house, and none of them were malnourished. A county ordinance, however, restricts the number of pets to just five animals per household.

As a result, the homeowner was cited by code enforcement, meaning she could pay up to a $1,000 fine and spend up to 60 days in jail, Diez said.

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He said the owner cooperated and voluntarily gave up all but five of the dogs.

He said none of the dogs were spayed or neutered, so they kept having puppies, which is how so many dogs ended up in her home.

This left the county with 157 dogs to house, which would have overwhelmed Rockdale’s animal shelter.

Thankfully, Diez said, several metro Atlanta rescue groups stepped up to house the dogs and find them new homes.

The Society of Humane Friends of Georgia in Lawrenceville, Paws Atlanta, Perfect Pet Rescue of Atlanta and Pregnant Dog Rescue in Griffin all assisted to pick up nearly all the dogs.

As of Wednesday evening, Diez said only about 20 dogs remained. He said people interested in adopting these pets should reach out to any of the four rescue groups.

Cox Media Group