Two Missouri men are charged with abandoning eight puppies to die of heat exhaustion in a sealed plastic tote outside a local humane society that was closed for the day.
Seth Vaile, 30, is facing eight counts of animal abuse. Samuel Allen, 36, is also facing charges in the ongoing investigation, according to a Jasper County Sheriff’s Office news release.
The heartbreaking discovery was made on Sunday when employees of the Jasper County Humane Society opened the tote and discovered the dogs dead outside the facility at 140 E. Emperor Lane.
Deputies launched an investigation after being summoned to the humane society on Monday at 11:40 a.m. for an animal abuse case, according to a probable cause statement outlining the allegations.
When the deputy arrived, he said the caller had reported finding the tote on the property between two bushes. According to the statement, a veterinarian determined that the dogs died as a result of heat exhaustion.
On Sunday at 10:27 a.m., facility surveillance footage captured a man leaving the tote on the ground between bushes and walking away, according to police.
“The tote was placed partial between some bushes, halfway on the sidewalk, and in the sun,” according to the law. “The tote was closed, which caused it to be completely sealed.”
The man in the video, wearing a shirt with the number 54 on the back, was quickly identified as Vaile.
He was arrested on a warrant and taken to Jasper County Detention Center, according to the document.
“The suspect was still wearing the shirt with the number 54 on the back at the time of his arrest for the warrant,” according to the paperwork.
According to the probable cause statement, Vaile admitted to dropping off the puppies despite knowing the business was closed.
Connie Andrews, the Humane Society’s director, wrote on Facebook: “I don’t often comment on pets being left outside the shelter because I’m glad they chose to leave them where they can be found and cared for. However, we discovered these 8 puppies in a closed tote outside the shelter in a difficult-to-find location, but all eight had died. Why didn’t you leave them by the door so they could be found?”
“I do not understand leaving them where we could not see them,” she told us. “We may be full, but we would never turn these babies away.
If the drop-off fees forced someone to do this, we have never turned puppies away even if their owner couldn’t afford it. We’ve actually been fixing the moms for free when we take the puppies. I need your help to spread the word that this is NOT OKAY!”
