HUDSON, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Five mini Goldendoodles were rescued from conditions that the Columbia-Greene Humane Society said were unsafe and harmful. 

“It was called in by a neighbor, saw these animals running around and they were completely encased in hair very much like an exoskeleton or a tortoise shell,” said Ron Perez, President and CEO of the Columbia-Greene Humane Society.

Curtis Rist, 63, of Greenport was arrested Monday and charged with two counts of animal cruelty and surrendered the dogs to the Humane Society. Perez said that one of them, 5-year-old Wally, needed immediate attention with three pounds of matted fur that needed to be removed.

“After you trim all that down, there’s still tears in the flesh from where that hair was pulling when he was running so that has to be treated with antibiotics,” Perez said. “Because he was encased, every function he had—he couldn’t relieve himself properly. They’re going to make a full recovery but they’re going to be sore for a while.” 

Perez said that neglect cases have increased over the past year and the shelter is working to provide different resources for pet owners to prevent maltreatment.“There’s been some issues with getting proper veterinary care, proper food,” he said. “We have a low-cost veterinary center now to service people who have financial woes. We also have a food bank so people can get food at any time.”

All five dogs are expected to make a full recovery and go up for adoption next week. If you are interested in adopting the dogs, you can visit the shelter’s website at cghs.org to fill out an application to be pre-approved for adoption.