By Mark Rosman
Staff Writer
HOWELL – In the immediate aftermath of a rescue operation that saw 276 dogs removed from a home on Bennett Road in Howell, one thing was clear: financial donations from the community will be needed to help pay for the care of the rescued animals in the upcoming weeks.
That was the assessment of Ross Licitra, the chief of the Monmouth County SPCA Law Enforcement Division who directed a staff of dedicated individuals clad in hazardous materials uniforms who kept entering a single-family home that was filled with feces and urine in order to claim hundreds of dogs from a man and a woman who are likely to face criminal charges.
Licitra said he expected to meet with representatives of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office on June 6 to determine what charges the dogs’ owners will face.
The names of the dogs’ owners had not been released as of June 6. The owners remained in the home during the rescue operation and Licitra described them as being cooperative with authorities. He said they were a middle age couple who told the SPCA representatives they started out with eight dogs three years ago “and it turned into this.”
“This” was a situation Licitra called “the worst hoarding case in the history of Monmouth County and one of the worst in New Jersey history. It is just insanity … you cannot comprehend people living like this.”
The June 3 rescue of 276 dogs living free in a home on a quiet street in Howell was the culmination of an investigation that began sometime before that date when an animal control officer was dispatched to the neighborhood to look for a loose dog, Licitra said.
“The officer had an idea something was not right,” he said, explaining that contact could not immediately be made with the residents of the home that eventually became the target of the massive rescue effort.
Authorities were finally able to initiate contact with the residents on the evening of June 2 and were told by the homeowners that they believed there were about 80 dogs living in the home, Licitra said during the early evening hours of June 3 as the rescue of the puppies was still unfolding on Bennett Road.
“The dogs appeared to be in fairly good condition that evening (June 2) and we did not want to initiate the rescue at that time. We were here at 9 a.m. today (June 3) and started taking out the dogs. The 80 dogs turned into 100 dogs, the 100 dogs turned to 150 dogs, the 150 dogs turned into 200 dogs and it just kept going,” he said.
The rescued pups, including some who were born while the operation was unfolding, were accepted by representatives of the Monmouth County SPCA, Eatontown; the Associated Humane Society, Tinton Falls; and St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center, Madison. Licitra said the SPCA has an established working relationship with St. Hubert’s, which is in northern New Jersey.
Licitra said those organizations will need financial support from the community to care for the hundreds of dogs who arrived unexpectedly on the same day. He asked for donations that will be put toward the animals’ care. The chief said it may be a week or two before the dogs can be put up for adoption.
At 5:30 p.m., when the number of rescued dogs stood at about 250 – each pup was given an identity bracelet as he or she was carried out of the home – Licitra was on his cell phone, soliciting any organization he could reach and asking for more dog carriers to be delivered to the scene.
More carriers were eventually found and delivered and the rescue effort resumed at about 7 p.m.
Manalapan residents Kathy and Stu Kibrick, who own five dogs, stopped by and contributed seven carriers after they received a call from Sharon Gaboff, the owner of Adopt-A-Pet, Millstone Township, when she became aware of the situation that was unfolding in Howell.
As the evening wore on and puppies were still being brought out of the home in a rescue effort that was unlike anything anyone at the site had ever seen, Licitra called the animals’ owners “caring people who love animals and who are heartbroken about losing their animals.” But, he cautioned, “If you realize you are overwhelmed in a situation such as this, call us for help.”
In an update on the morning of June 6, Licitra said between 20 and 25 dogs that were removed from the house were pregnant. If each of those dogs delivers a litter of between four and five puppies, that could add another 80 to 100 dogs to the final count, he said.
“We are still going through the dogs, cleaning them up and starting to socialize them. They are in shock, this is a new environment for them. Volunteers have been coming out to help,” Licitra said.
The following organizations would appreciate donations to help care for the dogs:
• Monmouth County SPCA, Eatontown, 732-542-0040
• Associated Humane Society, Tinton Falls, 732-922-0100
• St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center, Madison, 973-377-2295.
Donations may be made online via www.monmouthcountyspca.org