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Local dogs spent time with fugitive hoarder arrested in Vermont

When local authorities and the Humane Society of the U.S. were finally allowed into the Every Dog Needs A Home Sanctuary (EDNAH) in Gamaliel, AR in the fall of 2005, they were not prepared to find one of the largest cases of animal hoarding in the country.

Tammy Hanson and her husband William had amassed close to 500 dogs by the HSUS’s count. Many were dogs which had been saved after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The Hansons encouraged rescue groups to send them dogs, adding to the 300 dogs on the site before the storms. Overwhelmed and faced with the biggest disaster for pets this country has experienced, small shelters and rescue agencies in the area were grateful for the offers of assistance by shelters in other areas. No one realized that the Hansons were hoarders rather than rescuers, and the Hansons refused to allow volunteers delivering dogs to their "sanctuary’" onto the property where they would have witnessed the conditions under which hundreds of animals were suffering.

Dogs that were rescued after the storms were transported to the EDNAH site in crates and travel cages. Many remained in their crates for their entire time with the Hansons, as long as five weeks. Besides the physical injury this caused them, most suffered from painful urine burns on their paws and body, and some exhibited a variety of behavioral disorders when eventually removed from their crates .

Huey, a male Rottweiler ,spent time at the EDNAH site after being rescued from the streets of New Orleans by the Humane Society of Louisiana when its Camp Katrina location ran out of space in its kennels. Sunny, a young male border collie mix, was living at the site before the storms added nearly 200 dogs to the population. Both dogs found homes in southern Vermont after being transported to the Windham County Humane Society in Brattleboro.

Sunny, who lives in Guilford with his owner, Debbie Jacobs, was the inspiration for the FearfulDogs.com website which Jacobs created to help people living and working with fearful or shy dogs. “Most people don’t understand how important early life experiences are for dogs”, explains Jacobs. “When dogs are not exposed to different people and situations in safe ways when they are young they can grow up shy and fearful. This can lead to aggression and fixing the problem, if it’s even possible, takes time, patience and training.” Jacobs went on to write a book to help owners of fearful dogs and assists local trainer Deb Theriault with classes specifically designed to give owners the skills they need to help their shy dogs.

The Hansons were apprehended in Sutton, Vt., July, after three years as fugitives following a conviction for multiple counts of animal cruelty in Arkansas.

Jacobs says the legal consequences for hoarding and animal abuse are often ineffective in preventing repeat offenses. “Most hoarders live to hoard again.” Jacobs comments, “Every community has people who are not caring for their animals properly.  Hoarders do it on a larger scale.”

• FearfulDogs.com