NORTH BERGEN — Animal control officers spent the frigid afternoon of Wednesday, Jan. 13 removing 54 live dogs and cats and a dozen dead ones from a home on Hillcrest Place in North Bergen, and arranging for the live animals’ transportation to nearby no-kill shelters for adoption, according to newspaper reports.
According to authorities, the resident of the home had received a series of summonses after neighbors complained about the barking and the smell. The resident had agreed to give up the animals and was due in court Wednesday morning to work out the details. When he failed to appear the authorities went to the home and rescued the dogs and cats, which had allegedly been left alone since Friday morning, when the owner was last seen by neighbors. The owner’s whereabouts are currently unknown and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, authorities say.
The interior of the house was empty of furniture, police said, and in terrible condition. An upstairs bedroom was home to 17 puppies. The stench filled the street, and animal control officers wore masks as they removed the dogs one at a time from the building. A total of 49 dogs and five cats were removed, along with 11 dead cats and one dead dog.
Participating in the afternoon’s rescue effort were North Bergen police, health inspectors, officials from the township’s animal control firm New Jersey Animal Control and Rescue (NJACR), and volunteers from rescue groups and local shelters including Bergen County Protect and Rescue Foundation, Ramapo Husky House, St. Hubert’s, and others.
Anyone interesting in adopting one of the rescued animals can call the North Bergen Health Department at (201) 392-2085.
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