Exclusive: ASPCA opens probe after Fordham neighbors report pack of dogs in apartment
Even when the dogs are inside, neighbors say the barking doesn’t stop.
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Fordham neighbors say they’ve endured years of constant barking and the stench of dog urine coming from a Ryerson Avenue apartment — keeping them up at night and seeping into their homes through shared pipes.
“You can smell it… very, very bad,” said Mrs. Asantewaa, who lives in the building. “You can’t sleep… you can’t do nothing.”
Tenants say the situation escalated earlier this month when at least a dozen Chihuahuas escaped into the hallway from Apartment 1A. Neighbors identified the unit as the source of the noise and odor they say has plagued the building for years.
Even when the dogs are inside, neighbors say the barking doesn’t stop.
“I smell it coming out the shower pipes in the morning,” said another tenant.
Neighbors say the tenant in Apartment 1A rarely opens the door, leaving residents to deal with the noise and odor on their own. Some say they’ve resorted to placing air fresheners outside the apartment door in an attempt to mask the smell.
When shown video of the dogs through her window, Maria denied the dogs had escaped from her apartment, saying, “That’s not my house.” She later acknowledged owning seven Chihuahuas, adding, “It’s not too many Chihuahuas!” She even added that the smell is not bad, but "loving."
But video obtained by News 12 appears to show more dogs than the tenant admitted to having.
The building superintendent says tenants are only allowed to have two pets and raised concerns about the dogs’ welfare.
“We tried to go inside to tell her it’s illegal to have these dogs, but she don’t want to remove them,” the superintendent said.
The ASPCA confirms it has opened an investigation into the situation. The landlord and the tenant are currently in court as they attempt to resolve the issue. How many dogs remain inside the apartment remains unclear.
