PITTSBURGH — Two men are accused of abusing and neglecting nine dogs in a Pittsburgh home.
According to court documents, police received a tip from a concerned citizen about animal abuse happening at a house on the 5100 block of Blair Street in Hazelwood.
Police said they were given video of what appeared to be Ryan Chavers, 31, hitting the dogs with what they described as a long pipe-like object.
Officers said that Garrett Harper, 47, was also living at the house.
Police entered the house on June 5 at 7:45 a.m. after getting a search warrant.
Nine cane corso dogs were found inside. Three of them were adults and six were puppies, all around eight weeks old.
Police said all of the dogs were contained in the kitchen, which smelled of urine and feces. When officers took the dogs out of the house, they saw the animals were covered in it.
The animals were in need of medical care and were taken to Animal Friends for treatment. Among them, the puppies had bloody tails, with one having a partially docked tail that was still hanging off.
Another puppy was unable to walk and later died.
An adult dog that was pregnant was suffering from severe medical issues, including an enlarged heart and blindness in one eye, had to be euthanized.
A veterinarian at Animal Friends explained to officers that all of the dogs had open wounds because of illegal and unsafe docking.
Police said Chavers told them another dog had previously died from heat stroke, but no body was present or recovered.
Charges were filed against both Harper and Chavers on July 3. Combined, the two face over 100 charges.
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