TROY, Ala. (TROJANVISION) — For the past week, Troy Animal Rescue Project (T.A.R.P.) has been working to rescue over 100 animals from a home in Jack.  

“This is one of the top five homes that I have operated in that has been a hoarding situation,” said Tiffany Howington, the Director of TARP.

One trailer. 100 animals. That’s the challenge the Troy Animal Rescue Project has found itself up against. For nearly a week, TARP has been in the Jack community working to rescue animals from what volunteers are calling “the hoarding house.”

Roaches, spiders, and maggots have swarmed the house. A broken water pipe has left areas soaked. And feces can be found in every single room.

“It covers every single piece of furniture. It’s feet deep in places to the point that you can’t pull over the furniture,” said Howington. “We used three or four people just to flip mattresses and furniture to look under it to make sure we weren’t missing dogs or puppies.”

That’s not the only problem. unfortunately, the house’s condition and rural location are helping the remaining dogs and cats remain hidden from rescue workers.

“They’re living in the walls, the flooring of the trailer, the insulation of the trailer, and also in the woods,” explained Howington. “The females have dug dens where they have had puppies so it’s very difficult for us to find them. We have an infrared camera that’s coming later this week to help us locate some of the animals that are inside the house.”

Dedicated volunteers have braved close to 100 degree heat, mosquitos, fleas, and ticks in order to rescue as many animals as possible but TARP says help is still desperately needed.

“We are in need of donations for their care. They’re currently experiencing a lot of bacterial infections because of the conditions of the home. None of the dogs have been vaccinated or spayed and neutered so we’re having to go through and do all of that for them,” stated Howington.

“There’s dog bite wounds from them fighting over food and resources. There’s also a lot that are heartworm positive because we’re in the middle of the country, and unfortunately there’s a lot of mosquitos out here.”

As more animals are captured and treated, more foster families will be needed in order to help the dogs socialize and take the first steps toward forever homes. For more information about donating and fostering, visit www.troyanimalrescueproject.org.

According to TARP, the owner of the home was living inside the trailer days before volunteers arrived. TARP was contacted after the owner was hospitalized for ongoing medical issues. As of this report, the owner remains hospitalized and will not be returning to the home.