Ronald and Shelly Brier of Milford Avenue in Buffalo are both charged with animal cruelty after veterinarians removed four pounds of matted hair from their extremely ill dog.
Early Monday morning, an investigator with the SPCA serving Erie County was called to the scene after police discovered what they thought was a dead dog in the basement.
"I didn't know what I was looking at," said Officer Jessica Coughlin. "I thought it was simply a ball of fur. There was no movement. I couldn't tell if it was an animal, and if so, what kind of animal it was. I couldn't tell one end from the other, couldn't tell if whatever the animal was alive or dead."
The dog, named Dori, was so severely matted she could not move, but was still breathing. Dori was rushed to the SPCA’s Tonawanda shelter where veterinarians began working to remove the matted hair. It took around two and a half hours:
When Dori was first brought in she weighed 11 pounds. After the hair was removed, she weighed just seven.
While removing the hair, veterinarians found twine embedded in her left paw. It had worked through the soft tissue and was crushing her toes, breaking one of them. Dori also has ear infections and damaged eyes.
Her owners surrendered her to the SPCA. They are due back in Buffalo City Court on December 18.
