Broadway Rescue Update One Month Later

Healing, Hope, and Second Chances: The Remarkable Progress of the Broadway Rescue Dogs

Fig- May 8th

Fig is living a very different life today than he was just four short weeks ago.

You may recognize him from WHSV’s coverage on May 8, 2025, when they reported on our response to a devastating hoarding case in Broadway, VA. That morning, we received a call from Rockingham County Animal Control about a property where the owner of 40 dogs had been found deceased. The individual, who suffered from hoarding disorder, had been living in deplorable conditions alongside the dogs. The suffering people and animals endure is heartbreaking.

Over the following days, we took in a total of 58 dogs from this property. Fig was among the first 15 dogs with the most urgent medical needs brought back to the RHSPCA that day. He looked and felt miserable. His skin was raw and painful from demodectic mange, he was very malnourished and he was terrified. Completely overwhelmed by the unfamiliar world around him when he first arrived at our shelter. It’s likely he had never left the property before, let alone been in a car.

The Property Where The 59 Dogs Were Found

The outpouring of support from volunteers, fosters, and donors was immediate. The shelter was already near capacity, but we knew we had to act quickly to get every dog to safety. The Katsorelos and Anderson families graciously offered space to set up temporary shelter, which allowed us to return to the property the very next day and continue rescuing dogs. Others gave generously of their time—helping to care for the dogs housed offsite, opening their homes as fosters, and providing crucial financial support to help cover the unexpected cost of caring for these dogs.

In total, we took in 59 dogs from this hoarding case. Many of the dogs, like Fig, were suffering from demodectic mange, which had left their skin hairless, raw, and painful. While some required relatively straightforward treatment for conditions like mange and malnutrition, others needed urgent veterinary care, including amputations and emergency spay surgeries due to at-risk pregnancies. Despite everything they had

Offsite kennels, thanks to the Anderson family

endured, all of the dogs were remarkably sweet natured, though most were very unsocialized—unfamiliar with people, indoor environments, or receiving individual attention for the first time in their lives.

As we continued to care for the dogs Fig had once lived with, he was settling into life with Rebecca’s family. Slowly, he began to learn how to be part of a family, receiving the one-on-one attention he had never known. He adjusted to medical baths, vet visits became less stressful, and as his fur started to grow back and his personality emerged, the painful life he had known began to fade into the past.

Each dog from this case was treated as an individual. Some needed intensive medical and behavioral rehabilitation; others were healthy enough to be transferred to partnering rescue organizations. Staff, fosters, and volunteers continue to work tirelessly to meet each dog’s unique needs, helping them heal and prepare for the next chapter of their lives.

Fig’s story is just one of many but it’s a powerful reminder of what’s possible when a community comes together. Several foster families were so moved by their experience that they chose to adopt the dogs they welcomed into their homes. The remaining dogs from this group, aside from a few still receiving medical treatment, will be available for adoption at our upcoming “Name Your Price” adoption event this Saturday, June 14, 2025.