FRANKLIN COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - The Franklin County Humane Society has reached capacity after officials rescue 75 animals in a case of animal hoarding this week.
The cats and dogs were taken from a home in Carrabelle Monday.
Since then, the humane society has worked to nurse them back to health so they can be adopted.
There's quite a tale behind how these animals got here and it's not pretty.
"The smell from the house was atrocious," said Karen Martin, Executive Director at Franklin County Humane Society. "It didn't require even going in to know there was something horrible behind the doors."
Monday, Carrabelle police and Franklin County officials corralled 18 dogs and 56 cats.
The felines -- in bad shape.
"Every single one of them was sick with upper respiratory disease, flea infestation, ear mites and intestinal parasites," said Martin.
As for the dogs, behavior is the big issue.
"They have stayed in very small crates, been in contained areas, so they're very protective of their space," said Martin. "Once you get them out of their space, the tails go up. They walk happily on a leash."
When the cats first got here, all of them were weak in one way or another, but they've made remarkable progress here at the humane society. None of the cats are feral, and in a few weeks, all of them will be ready for adoption.
"We won't be able to adopt every single one of these animals," said Martin. "This is a rural county with limited resources."
The humane society is networking with nearby organizations to help find homes for the animals. The director doubts any of them belong to other owners.
But for now, it's rest and recovery -- from an unhealthy environment.
