Berrien County Sheriff's Office/Atlanta Humane SocietyA man from Georgia has been arrested after rescuers discovered hundreds of dogs had been living in horrific conditions at his property.
58-year-old Craig Gray, from Nashville, ran a breeding business called ‘Georgia Puppies’, but voluntarily surrendered over 630 dogs last week after telling a Georgia Department of Agriculture inspector how he needed help and could no longer look after the dogs.
Gray is now facing multiple pending charges ‘for the cruel treatment of these dogs and obstruction’, and was arrested following a ‘thorough search of Gray’s residence and kennel’ on March 7.
Gray is now booked in the Berrien County Jail pending charges, and it is unclear at present exactly how many charges there will be.
According to a statement, which has been posted to Facebook, from Berrien County Sheriff’s Office:
On Thursday March 7th, a week after the Georgia Department of Agriculture came to the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office and advised Sheriff Ray Paulk that they had done an inspection on the business of Reason Craig Gray, the Department of Agriculture called the Sheriff and advised that they had spoken to Gray and he admitted he brought more puppies back to the Barney Parker Road Property.
Investigators with the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office immediately obtained a search warrant for Gray’s business known as “Georgia Puppies” and executed it with Berrien County Animal Control on standby.
Throughout the course of the search, a further 85 dogs were rescued. As reported by The Huffington Post, the rescued animals are now being cared for various shelters and rescue groups in the region.
On Thursday March 7th, a week after the Georgia Department of Agriculture came to the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office…
Posted by Berrien County Sheriff's Office on Thursday, 7 March 2019
Sheriff Ray Paulk from the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office stated:
There are many questions yet to be answered and one huge one is how this licensed pet dealer was allowed to have an operation with this many beautiful creatures to be able to populate to the point of being out of control and inhumane.
Sheriff Paulk added:
We are currently obtaining more documentation from the veterinarian examinations, retrieving statements, and reviewing the Georgia Department of Agriculture’s reports.
The Atlanta Humane Society – who have taken in some of the dogs – have given the following heartbreaking description of the living conditions of these animals prior to being rescued:
These dogs have been living in crates their whole lives- one tiny crate stacked on top of another. They’re matted, covered in feces and have never been held or walked.
This morning, our team is bringing some of the 700 dogs found living on a property in South Georgia into our…
Posted by Atlanta Humane Society on Sunday, 3 March 2019
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.