32 pit bulls seized in
cruelty cases

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WPRI) - New Bedford Animal Control officers have seized a total of 32 pit bulls in just a matter of days. In one of the busts, they rescued 28 pit bulls, 19 of them puppies, from a Weld Street apartment.

The dogs were stuffed into crates and left in an apartment with not heat or electricity and was littered with animal waste.

"It was like someone took a gallon of ammonia and splashed it everywhere," said Emanuel Maciel, director of New Bedford Animal Control.

Maciel said Animal Control received a tip from a person who visited the apartment, after responding to a newspaper ad about puppies for sale.

"By doing this, we basically saved their lives," said Maciel.

The 28 dogs were seized Sunday, and have since been transported to a shelter in Boston.

Just a few days later, on Wednesday morning, Animal Control officers seized four dogs from another house owned by the same people in the first bust.

Those owners are facing multiple animal cruelty charges.

The dogs will eventually be put up for adoption. For more information, you can call 508-991-6366 or log on to the Animal Control Web site.