Dying Dog, Vulture Rumors Addressed By Paulding Authorities

DALLAS, GA — Dramatic online rumors about starving dogs and lurking vultures in Paulding County are untrue, the county marshal's office said Thursday.

The office, which enforces state and local ordinances, including animal control, said stories about a call they received on Tuesday had gotten out of control.

"While we do appreciate being notified to check on the welfare of all pets, we ask that you please obtain all the correct information before posting incorrect social media or spreading incorrect information about a responsible pet owner," bureau spokeswoman Maj. LeAnn LeHolm said in a written statement.

At about 11:51 a.m. Tuesday, the bureau received a call from someone saying she was concerned about two dogs at a home on Thorn Thicket Drive in the Rockmart area.

She said the dogs were tethered inside a fenced enclosure and didn't have water or shelter. Most dramatically, she said there were several vultures circling the dogs.

An animal control officer went to the home at about 12:03 p.m. While the owner was not home, the officer saw two dogs he reported "both appeared to be active and healthy."

They had water and doghouses which the officer said were appropriate shelters.

They were tethered — which can only be done for a limited amount of time according to a local ordinance — but had room to move and could reach their water, the officer said.

A notice was left for the owner, who contacted the marshal's bureau later Tuesday. He told officers he was not aware of the tethering ordinance and would fix the issue. He said he tethered the animals because they dig under his fence and that he was looking for other solutions.

The owner told the bureau that the vultures have lived in the area for a long time and that, surprisingly, his dogs let them eat and drink their food.

A repeat visit to the home was made Tuesday night and the dogs were inside a garage and no longer on tethers.

The Marshal's Bureau also sought to knock down rumors, also spread online, that they'd been alerted to problems with animals at the home multiple times over the past two years. Since 2013, there have been four calls to the home, the bureau said — all of them made by the homeowner about stray animals.

"Our office is satisfied with the findings of this case and the case has been closed," LeHolm said in the release.

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