Beagles

Hey, Bunny here again! I know I usually try to keep things light in my blog posts, but I need to be real with you. It has been an overwhelming summer for all of my people at HSWM, with animal adoptions being at record lows nationwide–but when animals are suffering, the staff here never think twice about pitching in to help!

HSWM is a destination shelter for pets in need of help, so we are made aware when there are large-scale rescues, like the one in Cumberland, VA. I was told that an organization called The US Department of Agriculture, which regulates breeders that sell animals for research and testing, reported dozens of violations of the Animal Welfare Act at a beagle breeding facility run by Envigo RMS in Cumberland, Virginia over the past year.

During the investigation, it was found that these poor pups had been kept in prison-like conditions, with live insects, worms, maggots, beetles, flies, ants, mold, and feces in their food. EUGH, I can’t even imagine!! They even said that 300 puppies had died in the span of seven months of "unknown causes." Well, of course, HSWM couldn’t ignore this so we sent staff and volunteers to help! A van brought 25 of these beagles to my kennels shortly afterward to start their new lives in their own furever homes!

The beagles arrived dirty, sick, and scared, but the awesome staff here at HSWM made sure they got all of the help they needed, and then found them loving homes where they could get the treatment they deserved! Their new owners gave them names instead of numbers, let them run in the grass and roll on their beds, gave them lots of treats and showed them how to be dogs. Now all of these beagles are thriving and living their best lives, all thanks to this community that was so eager to help us support them. Thank you!