FIRST ON FOX: Animal welfare groups are calling on the Biden administration to address a large number of abandoned pets at the southern border.
Fox News Digital obtained photos and videos of pets in Colony Ridge, Texas, from animal advocacy group Boots on the Ground that were reportedly abandoned by migrants, including some that appear severely neglected or injured.
Scores of animals have been abandoned at the U.S.-Mexico border as illegal immigrants flood into the country in record-breaking numbers.
Immigrants who are apprehended by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are often forced to leave their animals behind because animals are not allowed inside federal processing centers.
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Chase Scott, spokesperson for Big Dog Ranch Rescue (BDRR), a dog rescue group, told Fox News Digital the "number of abandoned dogs along the border is in the thousands," and the Biden administration is "doing virtually nothing" to address the situation.
Scott said BDRR "can lead this effort" but needs "donations or help from FEMA to address this issue." He called on FEMA to provide "a dozen spay [and] neuter vans to stop the overpopulation" and "transport and medical supplies," so they "can heal and rescue the dogs and get them into loving homes."
"We need to act now before this becomes completely out of control," Scott said.
"Colony Ridge is a huge migrant shanty town with starving dogs trying to eat chickens and livestock, so the migrants shoot them and attack them with machetes. The local communities are heartbroken and overwhelmed. They are turning into a Third World [country] with roaming packs of dogs."
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Scott said BDRR is heading to McAllen, Texas, this weekend on a rescue mission for the abandoned dogs after having gone to the Texas border city of Eagle Pass last year.
Scott said the dogs in McAllen, Texas, "are being fed" by the National Guard, "but with the cold fronts, the situation is dire," and BDRR will be rescuing the dogs there first.
After McAllen, Scott said BDRR will head "into the primary area with the largest issue," adding "ground zero is Colony Ridge."
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Bianca Gracia, president of Latinos for America and Latinos for Trump, told Fox News Digital what "is happening at Colony Ridge with the abandoned and abused dogs who are voiceless is a tragedy caused by elected officials' open border policies.
"We are asking America to step up and help us rescue these voiceless furry friends from a life they did not choose."
Animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) told Fox News Digital it has received reports that it's not just dogs and cats being abandoned. Animals like guinea pigs have been left too.
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES
Catie Cryar, spokesperson for PETA, told Fox News Digital that abandonment "is awful — no matter which side of the border it occurs on."
"PETA has received reports that animals as varied as guinea pigs and small dogs have actually been brought in by people entering the U.S. from Mexico, but we know that the border processing facilities don’t allow it," Cryar said.
"We have also heard of an informal network of people on the Mexican side who are looking after animals who have been denied entry," she added. "Many animals are a cherished, integral part of the family and, just like children, should not be separated from that family.
"PETA is calling on the Biden administration to allow animals into the U.S. if they are vaccinated or can be quarantined."
The White House referred Fox News Digital to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) when asked for comment.
"CBP follows CDC guidance with respect to the admission of dogs and other pets into the country," a spokesperson for CBP said. "If the pet’s owner is an inadmissible noncitizen in DHS custody and an animal’s owner does not transfer possession to family or friends, U.S. Customs and Border Protection works with local officials from animal health services, such as a local humane shelter, to see if there can be placement for the animal while its owner remains in custody."
Fox News Digital also reached out to FEMA and the National Guard for comment.
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The shocking photos and footage obtained by Fox News Digital show the harsh reality faced by the dogs and other animals abandoned by their owners as they enter the U.S. at the southern border.
The footage depicts abandoned animals in the migrant community of Colony Ridge, Texas, a collection of subdivisions outside Houston.
Colony Ridge is a controversial locale, having made headlines after being sued by the federal government for allegedly hooking Latino buyers up with seller-financed mortgages to set them up for defaulting on their loans.
Colony Ridge CEO John Harris told Fox News Digital in a statement that "Colony Ridge has done everything conceivably possible to rid the problem of stray dogs and cats and animals throughout the area.
"We have donated consistently $20,000 a year to help solve the problem to the local group that kind of helps spay and neuter and house these animals," Harris said. "So, we are doing our part without question."
Harris noted that Liberty County, which houses Colony Ridge, is a "rural area" that doesn't have an animal control group, and that if one goes "anywhere in a rural county in America, and especially here in Texas, you're going to have stray dogs and cats and other animals."
"That's just a fact," Harris said. "But we are doing everything we possibly can to curb the problem."
Harris also said "90%" of Colony Ridge residents "come from Harris County," 40 miles to the south.
"The animal issue is not an immigrant issue. It's an issue that stems from bad owners who need to understand how to care for their animals," Harris said. "We are providing that education and going above and beyond what is needed to help resolve this problem."
The Community Property Owners Association of Colony Ridge told Fox News Digital that This is Houston, a nonprofit organization, has been assisting in the new development since 2021 due to Liberty County not having animal control services.
