By Staff
Staff reports
An Atmore man was charged with cruelty to animals this week during district court this week.
The Humane Society of Escambia County brought the charges of cruelty to a dog in the second degree against John Brown of 1148 Conway Rd.
According to Renee Jones, cruelty investigator, Judge Dave Jordan handed down a verdict of guilty and sentenced the man to two years suspended sentence. Brown was also ordered to surrender any animals that he currently owns and was prohibited from ever owning animals again.
The Humane Society was granted the right to inspect his property to insure his compliance with that order. Directly following the trial, cruelty investigators proceeded to Brown's property and picked up a dog living on a chain in his junkyard.
On July 22, Humane Enforcement Officer Janet Beall responded to a complaint that Brown was starving two puppies. Upon arriving at his residence and locating the two six to eight month old labs in a makeshift pen standing ankle deep in mud and feces, Beall seized the severely emaciated dogs and took shocking photos of the conditions that they were living in.
According to a news release, the only water in the pen was a green algae gel and the food pan was filled with muddy water and maggots. The animals were covered with pressure sores from lying down in the muck with bone against skin against wet ground.
The two dogs, a yellow female, and a black male, were taken immediately to Dr. William Thompson for exam and treatment. The yellow female was so severely hookworm anemic that she had to have blood transfusions to survive. She weighed 16 pounds. The average weight for a female lab is typically in the range of 50 to 65 pounds. The black male weighed 21 pounds. The average weight for a male lab is in the range of 55 to 70 pounds.
Both dogs were treated and returned to the animal shelter where they were fed a normal diet and de-wormed on a regular basis. According to Jones, there is a happy ending already for both of the lab puppies. They both flourished rapidly and were adopted into wonderful, loving, pet responsible homes.  The Humane Society is hoping to be able to do the same for the other dog that was seized from Brown's property this week.