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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pups Dumped Surviving Puppies, Being Bottle Fed Every Two Hours, Suffered No Visible Injuries

A Wallace animal hospital is caring for a dozen puppies left for dead in a Dumpster this week by their owner.

The man said Thursday he put 13 puppies in a cardboard box and held it to the exhaust pipe of a car for about 45 minutes. He then left them in a Dumpster outside a Wallace grocery store Monday night thinking they were dead.

One died, but the rest survived, according to the Kellogg Animal Hospital where the puppies are being kept. Police arrested Matt Legard, 39, Thursday afternoon and plan to recommend he be charged with animal cruelty, Wallace police chief Scott TenEyck said.

“I feel like I’m getting harpooned on this for trying to save the taxpayers from another batch of unwanted puppies and trying to do it without being too inhumane about it,” Legard said in a telephone interview after bailing out of jail.

The animal hospital staff have been caring for the puppies - not yet a week old - since they were found outside the Excell Foods grocery store. The dogs must be bottle-fed every two hours and kept warm.

None of the puppies suffered any visible injuries.

“We’re picturing what this is going to be like in about four weeks when when we have 12 big puppies,” said Bethany Broaddus, animal hospital business manager. “It’s going to be crazy.”

Legard earlier in the week turned over the puppies’ mother to the animal hospital so she could nurse her young. However, he said he took the dog home Thursday morning because he was being harassed by police.

TenEyck arrested Legard for animal cruelty a few hours later. Shoshone County Prosecutor John Cossel said he will review the case to determine if additional charges are warranted.

“I felt it was once again cruel to the puppies to take the mother away,” TenEyck said. “It was also cruel to the mother.”

Animal cruelty, a misdemeanor, carries possible penalties of six months in jail and a $5,000 fine for first-time offenders.

Legard denied being cruel to the puppies or their mother. He said he tried to euthanize the puppies because the mother dog refused to care for them and had killed two.

“I tried to do the most humane thing I could think of,” Legard said. “I didn’t get up this morning, eat breakfast and decide to be cruel to puppies.”

Legard said he could not afford to neuter his dog. Aborting the puppies also was too expensive.

Animal clinics had turned him away when he asked for help giving away other puppies and the Shoshone County Humane Society does not list a number in the phone book, he said.

Remembering that puppies unable to be adopted are often gassed, he said he decided to do the same.

“They didn’t seem to be suffering,” Legard said. “They just laid in there until I couldn’t see them moving around anymore.”

A passerby heard the puppies whining and found them shivering in a Dumpster outside the grocery store. Most of their tongues had yellowed around the edges, apparently from carbon monoxide poisoning, Broaddus said.

Feeding tubes had to be inserted into the puppies’ stomachs. Heating pads were placed under their blankets to warm them.

Animal hospital staff worked for several hours Monday to treat the puppies. Six volunteers, including chief TenEyck, each took two home overnight to feed them every two hours.

Broaddus guessed the puppies had been alive about 24 hours before they were dumped.

“I don’t believe I am guilty of cruelty. I believe I am guilty of not being good at what I did,” Legard said. “I am not the menace to society they are trying to make me out to be.”

The puppies will remain at the animal hospital for up to five more weeks before they will be ready for adoption. The hospital will begin taking applications for potential homes in a couple weeks.

Animal experts urge animal owners to have their pets spayed or neutered. Anyone overwhelmed by large litters should call the Humane Society or county animal shelter to discuss options for adopting the animals.

“The point that we like to make is the first two weeks are pretty easy. The mama takes care of them,” Broaddus said. “You’ve got time to check out the resources.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo