Saving 86 dogs from an inhumane shelter was just the beginning. Now what?

The dogs crowded into the overflow room at Animal Friends Humane Society peered from their cages with wide, watery eyes, a near copy of commercials of the early 2000s put out by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Some were skittish, keeping to the corners of their cages. Others, excited for attention, poked their noses out of the slats of their crates to get a scratch on the head.

There are 86 of these dogs housed at Animal Friends Humane Society after being taken from a Madison Township animal rescue where they were found in inhumane conditions.

The shelter's parking lot was packed and the lobby bustling Monday afternoon as people brought in donations, piling up bags of dog food, pee pads and other supplies needed for the dogs' care.

Jenna Hogue, of Springboro, drove 40 minutes just to drop off her donations after hearing about the dogs on social media.

"That broke my heart," Hogue said. "I'm an animal lover."

Dog wardens found at least 30 dead dogs and dozens of others living in squalor at Helping Hands for Furry Paws animal rescue Friday. They were found without food or water, living in their own urine and feces in cages. Some were housed in a garage without air conditioning that reached temperatures up to 89 degrees, according to the sheriff's office.

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An overflow of dogs

Authorities found 90 dogs on the property. According to the sheriff's office, the dogs are under a court hold while the owner of the animal rescue, Ronda Murphy, faces charges of animal neglect and cruelty to companion animals. No court date was set as of Tuesday.

When the call came in to Animal Friends Humane Society to ask its staff to help with the rescue of 86 of the needy dogs, the shelter was already at capacity, said Megan Poffenbarger, intake coordinator.

So for now, the dogs are inhabiting pop-up crates wherever there is space. What was once a conference room, for example, is now home to three grown dogs, including a new mother, as well as the mother's eight 2-week-old puppies.

Most of the dogs live in separate cages while they undergo quarantine for diseases. Eventually, the shelter will microchip them, administer rabies vaccinations and spay or neuter the dogs.

Each dog requires about $300 a day to care for, Poffenbarger said.

Donations 'flooding in'

Donations like those Hogue carried in on Monday afternoon are helping to close the gap between costs and resources.

An Amazon wish list set up to benefit the rescued dogs has resulted in more than 60 packages to the shelter's front door and the humane society has raised more than $20,000 on Facebook.

As Poffenbarger talked about the dogs in her office, a FedEx truck bearing more donations rolled past the window.

Donations are "flooding in, every day, every hour," she said.

Even the employees are being supported. There's now an entire shelf dedicated to human snacks for employees working to bring the dogs back to health.

Animal Friends Humane Society has been serving Butler County for 70 years, and now the community is giving back. "It's amazing to see," Poffenbarger said.

Rescued dogs face array of ailments

The kennel area at Animal Friends Humane Society echoed on Monday with the barks of about 70 dogs.

The dogs taken from Helping Hands for Furry Paws watch from cages marked with posters bearing a glaring red stop sign, warning passersby that they are under court hold.

One of the biggest health hurdles facing the dogs is gastrointestinal issues brought on from malnourishment and exposure to feces. The effects of undernourishment are apparent in some of the puppies, who appear gaunt – their bones visible through their fur.

A few puppies paced their crates with flat feet, a condition known as "cage feet" that results from living in crates without a proper bottom. Six were found living in one crate before they were taken from the Madison Township location.

One pit bull rescued from the property is missing almost all of the fur from the top of his head. Poffenbarger believes it's the result of fleas or untreated ear infections that may have caused him to scratch repeatedly at his head.

Despite the challenges faced by the dogs in recovering from the conditions they endured, many are warming up to the care and compassion of the employees.

Two puppies rescued from the house curled up in Poffenbarger's arms and drifted off to sleep Monday morning.

"Everybody is so happy," she said.

Conditions at the rescue questioned before

Poffenbarger was part of the team of Animal Friends Humane Society employees that rescued dogs from the multiple properties where they were being kept as part of Helping Hands for Furry Paws.

The sound of dogs screaming and crying filled the house, she said, and the accumulation of waste created a stench so bad some employees were vomiting.

"The smell of urine literally takes your breath away," she said.

This wasn't the first time she'd been made aware of the conditions at the rescue.

Poffenbarger said she first heard about issues at Helping Hands for Furry Paws when she became the county's dog warden in 2020.

Dog wardens before her were aware of problems at the rescue for five to six years, she said, but no one was able to find a solution.

"There was no way in," Poffenbarger said. "We tried everything."

Donations, including toys, still needed

Although donations have helped supply the shelter with needed items such as cleaning supplies, the highest priorities now are getting toys for the puppies and slip leashes. Toys help the puppies get enrichment time while they are separated.

The shelter also has a general Amazon wish list for needs not related to the recently rescued dogs.

Until the legal case against Murphy, the animal rescue's owner, is resolved or the dogs are signed over to the shelter's custody, Animal Friends Humane Society is looking for people to foster dogs or other rescues to house dogs.

The mission statement of Murphy's animal rescue said, "We are driven by a single goal to save as many dogs as we can."

"It was all started with good intentions," Poffenbarger said.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 86 dogs saved from inhumane animal shelter receive flood of donations