Litter of puppies found in box in Clermont County

BATAVIA, Ohio (WXIX) - The Clermont County Animal Shelter is already packed. Now they have even more dogs on their hands after taking in more than eight pups.

The litter was discovered Wednesday possibly abandoned in a box in Goshen Township.

Clermont County Dog Warden Tim Pappas says they got the call on Sunday about dogs supposedly dumped in the woods behind Lakeshore Estates.

“Monday morning, I went and picked up eight little puppies,” Pappas said.

The puppies require around-the-clock care, a responsibility that now falls on staff members already overseeing a jam-packed facility.

“It’s extremely, extremely tough, because puppies take so much more time, especially when you have a great number, such as eight of them or more,” Pappas said.

The county has averaged around one case of dogs being dumped per month since Pappas began his tenure in September 2022.

Pappas, formerly a K-9 officer with Cincinnati PD, says he is prioritizing animal welfare cases like this and that harming dogs—including abandonment—can have serious consequences.

“Each dog is an individual charge,” he explained, adding perpetrators could be looking at monetary fines as well as “several years” of jail time.

Pappas says the best way to solve animal dumping is to stop them from happening. He asks those who are concerned about being able to care for their pets to reach out to a shelter for help rather than leaving pets alone to fend for themselves.

“If it was an accident that your dogs happened to get together and you didn’t mean for it, and they have puppies, that’s ok,” he said. “Accidents happen, and we get that. We have the means and resources that we can help to get the best resources, that we can help to try and relocate them best we can for you, even if we can’t.”

A reward is available for information leading to an arrest and conviction of the person who abandoned the litter found in Goshen Township.

If you have any information, you’re urged to contact the Clermont County Animal Shelter at 513-732-8854.

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