A neighbor says, at last count there were 19 dogs, but since two have had puppies, she’s just not sure.

Eyewitness News uncovers dozens of dogs neglected outside a North Memphis home. The dogs have no water, some are bleeding from constant bug bites, and six of them are locked in one pen all day long. Neighbors say they are sick of the next-door nuisance, so Eyewitness News went with an animal cruelty investigator to see the problem firsthand.

Neighbor Trish Douglas is fed up.

She said, “The last I knew there were 19 dogs, now the fact that two of them had puppies, I don't know, whether the puppies are alive or not. I don't know. You can smell the stench, and just imagine on a really hot humid day. The flies are so bad that they're eating their ears. They're bleeding. They're bloody. They're eating them raw.”

Douglas has been complaining about the conditions for months, but Wednesday was the last straw, when garbagemen found two dead dogs inside trash cans.

“The big huge dog, and that one was really bad he was so swollen. I was like oh my god. It just really upset me to see something like that,” said Douglas.

So Douglas called Eyewitness News. We brought a cruelty investigator from Memphis Animal Services to check on the dogs.

Douglas told Officer John Cox, “She tries to take care of them but I think her hands are too full.”

After Cox investigated, he determined there were violations and gave the dog’s owner 24 hours to fix the problem. He said the dogs don't have enough water or food. He's concerned about the smell and the possibility of disease- specifically the dogs with bloody ears.

Cox said, “If tomorrow afternoon things have not changed I'm very certain Mr. Snyder will send myself or somebody else out here, maybe two of us since there are so many dogs, and we'll have to address the issues of water and general maintenance.”

However, the number of dogs living there will not be an issue. There are no laws in Memphis limiting how many dogs you can have or how many can be in a pen.

Douglas thinks that kind of law needs to go on the books.

She said, “It's a health hazard, not only for her, but me, my animal.”

Animal cruelty investigators will be back out at the house Thursday. Officer Cox said there is a good chance some, if not all of the dogs will be taken away.

If you are having a problem with neglected dogs in your neighborhood, call Memphis Animal Services at (901) 362-5310.

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