Dozens Of Dogs Rescued From Backyard Breeder In Sutter County

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – They had been trapped in a barn with no sunlight, and now some Sutter County dogs are experiencing grass for the first time after being rescued.

"Unless they opened it up to feed them or care for them, they never saw the light of day," said Elsie Lodde, founder of the animal rescue group Recycled Pets NorCal.

More than 75 dogs were rescued from a backyard breeder who finally realized they were overwhelmed.

"They are willing to surrender, so we took every dog they would give us, which ended up being 77," Lodde said.

Recycled Pets NorCal has teamed up with other rescues to save the dogs.

"Most of them have fleas, a lot of poop on their butt, crust over their eyes," said Dana Chavez-Rey, owner of A Purrfect Groomer.

With that many dogs, space is hard to find. Luckily, A Purrfect Groomer is closed on Sundays and Mondays, so they were able to help house about a third of the dogs.

"I have 28 kennels that aren't being used, so I offered our facilities to have them housed and get them ready to be shipped out to other rescue organizations," Chavez-Rey said.

Soon, the rescuers will be helping the dogs find forever homes.

"Hopefully kind, loving people. These dogs are going to flourish," Chavez-Rey said.

The rescue group says they still have 20 dogs to rescue from the home.

For more information on how to help, and if you're interested in adopting, head to the group's website: http://recycledpetsnorcal.org/.