Authorities in Mantua, Ohio, discovered 146 deceased dogs at the home of an animal rescue organization's "founding operator" last Friday (June 16).
The Portage Animal Protective League stated a search occurred at the house of Canine Lifeline president Barbara Wible. "Inside the home, the Humane Agent discovered 146 deceased dogs in varying stages of decay," the statement wrote Monday (June 19).
It was further reported many of the dogs were found dead while confined within their crates. Authorities plan to conduct necropsies to determine how the dogs died.
"She just left. Not a care in the world," Wible's neighbor Jon Collier told local TV station WKYC.
In response, Canine Lifeline wrote a statement on Facebook saying Wible was hospitalized on June 2 after she collapsed in her home. Nevertheless, they expressed their shock about the discovery at her Mantua home, saying they are "grieving [the] tragedy" and are cooperating with authorities about the discovery.
"No volunteers were aware of any medical conditions that Wible had been diagnosed with prior to this most recent hospitalization, nor were any aware of the number of dogs she harbored, nor the condition of her home," the group stated.
Meanwhile, surviving dogs from Wible's Parma home were taken to an animal shelter in that community. Both Mantua and Parma are towns near Cleveland.
