Five dogs and a cat were given a new lease on life recently when an alert Postal Service employee saw them suffering inside an upstate New York home.
Westport, NY, Rural Carrier Patricia Dorr was delivering mail at the residence when she spotted the animals through a window. All were emaciated, and the dogs were tied to heavy pieces of furniture, limiting their mobility.
Dorr alerted authorities, who soon investigated and removed the pets, placing them in the custody of a local rescue organization.
The Press-Republican newspaper reported that the property owner has a history of mistreating animals and is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation.
An official on the scene described deplorable conditions in the house and said one dog was so eager for freedom that it broke off a piece of the furniture it was tethered to and dragged it around excitedly until its turn for attention.
A shelter veterinarian determined that the animals were 1-4 years old, and all were severely malnourished.
“But they are in our care now,” she said. “They’re all starting to put a little weight on.”