FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Many of the 44 dogs who were rescued from an accused animal hoarder last week won't get the chance to be adopted.
Their owner is still on the run, but many of the dogs will have to be humanely euthanized.
Meanwhile, they sit huddled in the Broward County animal shelter.
They haven't been hugged or rubbed. They just sit back, recluse. They lean on one another for comfort.
You can see the fear in their eyes. All they need is a little love and care.
And while some of the rescued dogs may eventually be adopted, more than a dozen of them might have to be humanely euthanized just because of the way they were kept by the accused hoarder.
It's one of the horrors of hoarding," said Lisa Menheim of Broward County Animal Care. "It's a form of cruelty because you don't have the wherewithal to take care of them properly, feed them properly, to spend time with all of these dogs properly."
And this isn't the first time their owner has been busted. In 2010, Ann Centofanti was accused of neglecting dozens of different dogs, leaving them to live in squalor.
"We don't know where she is right now," Menheim said.
These dogs are so desperate for attention, they all cluster together just hoping to get some love.
"Obviously they were not socialized," Menheim said. "She didn't spend any time with them. They have trouble reacting to people, walking on a leash. They're not housebroken."
The sad reality is that some of the skittish, scared pups who are showing signs of improvement, have hope for adoption. But most of the sad faces of the dogs rescued from the accused animal hoarder and now sit in cages at the shelter will never make it out alive.
"They're loyal to the end," said Animal Care Specialist Roland Jordan. "No matter what you do to a dog, they seem to gravitate to you."
Broward County Animal Care hopes that some rescue groups will step up and take some of these dogs to help socialize them.
Meanwhile, police are still looking for Centofanti. She faces 44 counts of animal cruelty. Those are third degree felony charges.