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10 dogs recovering at shelters across Denver metro after being seized from horrific conditions

Ten dogs recovering at shelters across Denver Metro after being seized from horrific conditions
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ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — Ten dogs were given a second chance at life when they were rescued from horrific living conditions at an Arapahoe County apartment. Now, the dogs are recovering and making daily strides towards adoption.

"They would really benefit from some training but overall, they're just super sweet, really social and playful dogs," said Desirae Audino, who oversees animal behaviors and transfers at the Aurora Animal Shelter.

According to a redacted police report, on Feb. 22, 10 dogs were seized from an Arapahoe County apartment — five were puppies and five were full-sized.

Body camera video obtained exclusively by Denver7 shows the filth the dogs were living in.

"I haven't seen anything to this extreme... in my career," Deputy Marc Hurwitz said. "[There were] approximately 10 dogs living in the apartment. There was feces and urine throughout the floor... there was blood throughout the apartment."

Since the ordeal, the puppies and dogs have been recovering at various animal shelters, including the Aurora Animal Shelter.

"They were obviously kept in unsanitary conditions — they were just super dirty, they needed a bath," Audino said. "We did give them all of their vaccines when they arrived, which they likely had none of. A couple of them were a little thin."

As the dogs continue to get the care they need, they'll go up for adoption across the Denver metro.

"Right now we have a lot of dogs, so we like to transfer dogs to other shelters if they have space available for adoptable dogs, and we don't have the room here," Audino explained.

The timeline for when each dog will be put up for adoption isn't planned out just yet, but Audino says so far, most of the dogs have very gentle and social.