New England News

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Print friendly version    Watch the video [pop-up]

Police investigating why couple had 22 dogs in their vehicle

SALEM, N.H. -- Police are investigating why a pair of women had 22 dogs, including three dead ones, in an SUV parked at a Wal-Mart this week.

The women said they had rescued 12 of the dogs from a puppy mill in Maine and that the other ten dogs belonged to one of the women.

Police were alerted by a customer who said the women told her they had the dogs in their vehicle.

The dogs were packed into a half-dozen small crates, police said.

"There were three or four dogs in each one," Salem officer Charles Flahive said. "The smell and conditions inside the car were terrible. They were all shaking and scared. They were all in tough condition."

One of the dogs bit Demers on the chin when he was removing it from the vehicle.

"They're a feisty lot," he said.

The dead dogs were an adult female and two puppies.

One of the women, Amy Moolic of Dracut, Mass., was arrested for disorderly conduct after police said she became "agitated and belligerant" in the parking lot.

Police said Moolic told them she had rescued the 12 dogs from a puppy mill in Somerville, Maine. They are talking with animal abuse officials in Maine and Massachusetts as part of their investigation.

"Right now, we don't think there was any abuse going on," said Sgt. James Chase. "We've taken the dogs into protective custody."

Police said Moolic could face animal cruelty charges of storing the dogs in such tight quarters. They said the ten dogs she said were hers were in better condition than the others.

Moolic, who was released on $500 bail, could retrieve four of the dogs immediately, police said. The others may be offered for adoption.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)