36 dogs seized from Midland property in animal cruelty case. It’s not the first time
Thirty-six dogs were seized from a Midland property Thursday, the second time authorities have taken dozens of possibly abused dogs from the same man.
Pierce County animal control officers received a tip that Elmer Givens Jr. was keeping “a large number of dogs” and shooting the dogs with a pellet gun, sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.
The tip included drone footage of the property in the 9000 block of Portland Avenue East and the alleged animal cruelty.
In January, a judge ordered Givens not to have more than five dogs because that is the limit allowed on his land.
That decision was handed down after the 41-year-old was arrested in December 2019 on suspicion of animal cruelty and had 48 pit bulls seized, many of whom authorities suspected had been used in a dog-fighting ring.
Prosecutors are still reviewing charges in the 2019 case, but most of his dogs were given new homes after he fought unsuccessfully to get them back.
Givens was not arrested Thursday.
Animal control officers found 36 dogs on the Midland property Thursday, including 15 puppies less than 3-months-old.
“It appears that many of the dogs were being used for the purpose of breeding and selling,” Troyer said.
Veterinarians examined all of the dogs and are awaiting results for blood work and X-rays. They are also checking out scar-like marks to determine if they came from puncture wounds or pellets.
This story was originally published October 15, 2020 at 9:10 AM.
