Holy Pack of Poodles, Batman!

One of the effects of the closure of the MSPCA's Western New England Animal Care and Adoption Center in Springfield is that the MSPCA's law enforcement officers working in western Massachusetts have lost their local place to take the nearly 500 animals they remove each year from situations of abuse and neglect.

So last week, when I got a call from my buddy Mike, manager of the MSPCA's Animal Care and Adoption Center at Nevins Farm in Methuen, I wasn't surprised to hear him ask DPVHS for help sheltering some cats and dogs about to be removed from a terrible situation a few towns to the east of us. Seems the MSPCA's Nevins Farm was prepared to remove the starved and neglected horses from the home, but they were hoping we could help with several standard poodles and a few cats. We agreed and made arrangements to meet the MSPCA's law enforcement officer the following morning.

Picture the usual standard poodle in your mind: a giant ball of black or white fluff prancing around the show ring like a cheerleader with a country-western hairdo. Not so these poor creatures. The poodles at this place--dogs who had been used to breed--were emaciated, terribly matted, and living outdoors in muddy kennels. Thanks to MSPCA law enforcement, the dogs, several cats, and a horse are now safely out of that horrible situation.

And thanks to DPVHS and the terrific folks at Fur's A-Flyin' pet grooming of Easthampton, the poodles are now freed of their horrible mats. One poodle's mats weighed 10 pounds! Think about all that weight pulling at the delicate skin of your feet or ears. Some of them couldn't even wag their tails because of the matted and urine- and feces-soaked fur. You can now visit these lovely dogs at the DPVHS dog adoption page.

Underneath all that fur were urine burns, sores, and infections. And while the dogs were so weakened by starvation that they couldn't stand long enough to be completely groomed, they are expected to make a full recovery.

Thank you to everyone who joined forces to make this rescue possible: the good folks at MSPCA for saving the animals from a lifetime of suffering, the staff at DPVHS who dropped everything to provide excellent care, and the Fur's a-Flyin' groomer for helping make the dogs comfortable again.

Stay tuned for updates on the cats!