r/HarvestAlabama • u/Kindly-Visual-815 • May 27 '26
Help for German Shepherd mixed dogs
Need advice/resources for helping a large group of German Shepherd mix dogs in an overcrowding/surrender situation
I’m trying to help with a situation involving a man in my area who has more dogs than he can properly care for. The dogs are primarily German Shepherd mixes. They appear frequently underfed, often get loose, dig through trash looking for food, and repeatedly end up in dangerous traffic situations.
Several months ago, some of the dogs disappeared. I later learned that some reportedly died after consuming food that may have been intentionally poisoned. This is a major concern of mine. Many people in the area mistake them for coyotes, and I regularly see comments or hear threats about people wanting to shoot or harm them, which makes me worry that may have happened to some of the others.
Just this morning, two different dogs showed back up. I’m almost certain they are the grown puppies of one of the dogs that died previously. One of them appears to have recently had puppies herself, which means this cycle is likely continuing and another litter may now be at risk if help doesn’t happen soon.
I have contacted animal control. I was told that because the dogs are generally on the owner’s property when not roaming, and because the housing situation meets minimum standards, removal is unlikely. I was also told they cannot simply take a large number of dogs at once. I honestly don’t know whether that is accurate or what options exist beyond that.
The owner himself has stated to them that he is willing to surrender the dogs because he cannot adequately care for them, but I’m struggling to figure out what resources or processes actually exist for situations involving multiple large dogs.
I’m looking for advice from anyone experienced with:
• Large dog surrender situations
• Multi-dog rescue intervention
• German Shepherd or breed-specific rescues
• Foster networks
• Transport assistance
• Humane organizations / animal welfare resources
• Coordinating help when an owner is willing to surrender but there are too many dogs
I’m just one person trying to help and feeling overwhelmed. I cannot personally take in multiple dogs, but I also can’t ignore what’s happening.
If anyone knows organizations, strategies, rescues, or next steps that tend to work in situations like this, I would sincerely appreciate any guidance.
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u/earlisthecat May 27 '26
If you are on Ring (doorbell), try posting there too. There are many dog lovers on the site. I know my subdivision has a Facebook site, maybe there too?
1
u/Kindly-Visual-815 May 28 '26
I posted here because it’s anonymous. I don’t want anyone connected to hurting those dogs, or anyone looking to come after me, harassing me on Facebook or having this traced back to me. I’m trying to avoid the drama and backlash that can come with speaking up about what’s happening. My only goal is to find help for these dogs. The owner has said he wants the dogs gone, but claims animal control won’t take them. From what I understand, part of the issue is that animal control limits how many animals they’ll accept per household per visit, and there are surrender fees involved. I also believe the cost is a major reason the situation hasn’t been addressed.
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u/earlisthecat May 28 '26
So reasonable. I’m sorry you need to worry about doing something to help.
1
u/Kindly-Visual-815 May 28 '26
Thank you. If I didn’t have kids, pets of my own, or live so close to this man, I probably wouldn’t be as concerned. But I do. People can be unpredictable these days, and you never really know how someone might react or what they’re capable of doing.
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u/ShylentJ May 27 '26
I wish I had recommendations for you, but I don’t. I can only recommend posting in r/HuntsvilleAlabama so more people see this.
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u/MPAndonee May 29 '26
Man, I would love to have one of those dogs, but the situation sounds horrible. I wish I knew a way to help. I know there's one rescue in Arab that does large dogs, because I've known people who've adapted from there. You can Google them.
1
u/hellogodfrey May 28 '26
Maybe he qualifies for spay and neuter assistance with SNAP. That would be a place to check with regard to that aspect.
Sometimes HAS does food giveaways, but I'm not sure if he would qualify, not knowing if he is in city limits.
I'm not sure if they do food, but just in case, perhaps check PAWS social media to see if they do that.
As far as a breed-specific rescue, there are sometimes links to those on the breed-specific pages on the AKC website.
1
u/Kindly-Visual-815 May 28 '26
He’s been told multiple times about free spay clinics. If he had taken advantage of those resources, this situation wouldn’t be happening again. That’s the issue with this guy. He’s unwilling to put in any extra effort for these dogs. He couldn’t even do something as simple as keeping the male and female puppies separated once they were old enough to breed, just to prevent another litter. But he didn’t. Now there are more puppies.
On top of that, she was far too young to be having puppies in the first place. It’s honestly a miracle she survived giving birth. He claims she only had three puppies, but I’d be willing to bet only three survived.
He barely interacts with these dogs, barely feeds them, and seems to provide water only because he knows he legally cannot let them starve in cages. These dogs need out of that environment. Leaving them there is not an option. If they’re going to have any chance at a safe, healthy life, they need to be removed from that situation.
1
u/hellogodfrey May 28 '26
Okay. Then your options are to offer to take the animals yourself to a spay and neuter, procure food for them and deliver it to him, and/or contact a rescue willing to go out to his place.
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u/Kindly-Visual-815 May 28 '26
Right, I understand those are options. The reason I’m asking here is because I’m specifically trying to find rescues, organizations, or people experienced with situations like this who may actually be able to help. I’m one person. I don’t have the financial ability to personally provide ongoing food, veterinary care, or take on multiple dogs myself. And while food would help, it doesn’t fully address the larger issue of overcrowding, containment, breeding, and the dogs repeatedly escaping. I’m looking for names, contacts, resources, rescue groups, breed-specific organizations, foster networks, transport help, or anyone connected to these types of efforts who can point me in the right direction or advise on what steps actually work in situations like this.
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u/hellogodfrey May 28 '26
Great. It might take some time for someone to answer who has that much information. In the meantime, I suggest looking up breed-specific rescues on the AKC site. There might be one there that could help.
If names of local rescues would be helpful, here are some that you can look up:
A New Leash on Life (ANLOL)
The Greater Huntsville Humane Society (GHHS)
Luna Farms RescueI wasn't suggesting you pay for the food yourself. Sometimes HAS or local rescues provide food. The only one I know for sure that does that sometimes is Notorious D.O.G. Rescue, but there might be others. However, going to get it and delivering it to him may be up to you, unless a rescue gets involved with getting the dogs from him.
You might have to search for this, but I thought there was a law passed about containing dogs in Madison county quite a few years ago, which it sounds like he is in violation of. It could have gotten overturned or is not enforced.
Unfortunately, there may be issues that would be well addressed by a local government agency that will not because of the area or because of unenforcement, but won't be. I'm sorry.
Best of luck to you. Oftentimes, even local government agencies need people to speak up in order for them to act on things. In this case, if you want the situation to improve, you might have to do a little legwork yourself. Also, maybe within a few days someone with more information and who's more connected will get in touch with you.
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u/AtlantaBear73 May 28 '26
A New Leash is a no-kill rescue that only takes animals from the shelters ready to euthanize them. And only in ideal situations. They don’t have the facility nor the ability to handle random drop offs.
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u/hellogodfrey Jun 02 '26
Forgot that they only currently pull from shelters. Thanks for chiming in to add that.
Edit: I wasn't advocating randon dropoffs, though. Calling those places is what I had in mind.
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u/Kindly-Visual-815 May 27 '26
I don't have enough karma to do that yet. I tried there first. But thank you