Animals Seized By Houston SPCA, Liberty County Sheriff Are Returned To Rescue Shelter

Updated 1:55 p.m. Jan. 11: Animals seized by the Houston SPCA and the Liberty County Sheriff's Office have been returned on a judges order.

Last week authorities removed 150 dogs, six cats and a horse that were found in various stages of neglect.

However, on Tuesday a Liberty County judge ordered those animals all be returned to the Puppy-Dogs-R-Us animal rescue.

On Wednesday, officials returned all of the animals to the shelter.

Shelter owner Margie Michalsky was looking at possible criminal charges faced possible criminal charges and the closure of her no-kill shelter before the judges ruling on Tuesday, but now she has a lot of community members who are stepping in to help her clean things up.

Original Story: DAYTON, TX-- More than 100 dogs that were seized by the Houston SPCA from a 20 acre self-described animal rescue will have to be returned after the case against the facility was dropped.

According to a KPRC report, a Liberty County judge ruled the raid and subsequent seizure of the animals as illegal and ordered 150 dogs, six cats and a horse that were taken from Puppy-Dogs-R-Us last week to be returned.

On Jan. 4, the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Houston SPCA removed 150 dogs, six cats and a horse from Puppy-Dogs-R-Us amid numerous reports of animals being kept in deplorable conditions.

The animals were found living in filthy conditions, amongst their own waste, suffering from various conditions of neglect.

Capt. Ken DeFoor of the Liberty County Sheriff's Department told the Dayton News last week that the facility had been under investigation since 2009, prior to last week's seizure.

"That place was horrendous," DeFoor said. He said the animals had been "virtually abandoned on the outskirts of the property without food, clean water, care or human interaction for weeks."

Officials said that some dogs were found standing on top of their kennels to escape filthy waters that had flooded their enclosures, while others were found confined to rusted wire crates stacked on top of each other in a dark, dingy shed.

Officials said that many animals had been left unattended inside structures on the outskirts of the property without food, clean water, care or human interaction.

When investigators from Houston SPCA arrived, they observed animals suffering from hair loss and diarrhea.

Image: Houston SPCA