Another win for the animals!

The woman accused of operating a puppy mill in Kaufman County, Texas will lose custody of the hundreds of animal in her care, a judge ruled today. Volunteers and staff with UAN, The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake will now begin transporting the animals from the temporary shelter where they've been for the past week to rescue groups and shelters for foster care and adoption.

See news coverage of the verdict.

And here are more details from UAN Emergency Services Manager Janell Matthies (pictured):

The animals won! Transport for the moms and babies will begin tonight. The volunteers are ecstatic and I am as well. What a long, hard week, but oh so worth it. To be able to tell all of these dogs, without a doubt, that they will never have to go back to the miserable lives they led at the puppy mill is enough reward for all of us.

I can hear the dogs all barking and yipping from outside the barn. I think they are feeding off our excitement. We’re wrapping up feeding and cleaning but no one wants to leave yet.

The dedication of the UAN volunteers once again has shined through and is obvious to all other agencies involved. So many of these people had never worked in any type of animal rescue, and I think we’ve converted the majority of the residents of Kaufman County. I was hugged and thanked by numerous people I had never met before when we were leaving the courthouse after the verdict came down.

Everyone was crying and clapping … one of the greatest feelings ever. Seeing the dogs go from scared, quiet, dirty and miserable to happy, yipping normal dogs has once again made up a million times over for the sweat, the poop, the aching muscles and exhaustion. I smell worse than I ever have before in my life, but there is nowhere else I would rather be.

I’m looking forward to telling the stories and sharing the photos of some of the many successes that came out of this rescue. For now I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. Stay tuned for more and THANK YOU all for your support.