There's a fine line between animal cruelty and someone with a loving heart who hoards animals and can't take care of them

By Wendy Isom
Article

MEDON, TN - Bessie Turley admits that she has more pets than she can probably handle.

"I don't deny I have too many animals," Turley said on Wednesday night, the day after she agreed to surrender more than half of her animals to the Jackson-Madison County Humane Society. "I'm keeping six of my cats, two dogs in the house and the one dog outside," she said.

Turley, 60, has more than 20 animals.

On Tuesday morning, the Madison County Sheriff's Office responded to a call about animal cruelty at Turley's Medon home at 1665 U.S. 18, according to a press release.

Turley takes offense at the accusation that she was cruel to her animals. "My animals are not abused. They wouldn't have round bellies if they were abused. These dogs are fed," she said, adding that she goes to the R &J supply store at least three times a week to get pet food.

Turley said she has cooperated with Humane Society officials and has agreed to say goodbye to some of her animals.

"I got to thinking about it. That's the humane thing to do," she said.

Koie Smith, acting interim shelter manager for the Jackson-Madison County Humane Society, said Wednesday night that no criminal charges will be filed against Turley.

"She's been very cooperative. There's a fine line between animal cruelty and someone with a loving heart who hoards animals and can't take care of them. What's going on here is an unfortunate soul trying to love them as best she can," Smith said. "She had dogs dumped at her house. She saw a stray cat here, a puppy there ... she was trying her best to take care of them."

But that was too big a task for one person, Smith said.

"We stepped in to be a resource to her," he said. They agreed to take 19 dogs, three puppies and five cats off her hands. "We are arranging for foster homes and trying to get space ready at the shelter."

David and Vernell Wilbourn live a few houses down from Turley. They said they were surprised to hear about an animal cruelty investigation.

"They're big and fat and healthy," Vernell Wilbourn said of Turley's animals.

David Wilbourn agreed. He said he has seen Turley's husband, "bring them big ole sacks of dog food and feed them."

Smith said when he arrived at her property Tuesday, "they all had fat bellies and looked taken care of. There were minor health concerns of fleas and ticks," he said. He gave Turley 48 hours to get rabies control papers and submit their vaccination records.

Her husband Faay Turley, 64, said "it's no violent crime. We just go too many animals, period." He is an employee of the Madison County Sheriff's Office assigned to the Madison County Penal Farm as a correctional officer.

Faay Turley and his wife are separated, but he had stopped by Bessie Turley's home on Wednesday to check on her.

Bessie Turley said one of the sheriff's deputies on Tuesday mentioned that there was an odor in the home from all of the pets.

"I'm fixing to get litter boxes,'' she said. ''I had been letting my cats use the bathroom on the floor. I put paper down of the floor. The two dogs use the paper. They (the sheriff's deputy) said they could smell it.''

Turley said she mopped after her animals. She said she has complied with the Humane Society, securing vaccination records and agreeing to give up some of her animals.

She said she didn't start out having a lot of pets, but then her dogs started breeding and the numbers grew. "They kept on breeding," she said.

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