MSPCA: Evidence pointing away from cruelty in dog deaths

WESTFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) - As the investigation into the deaths of nine dogs at a Westfield farm continues, a spokesperson for the MSPCA says that the evidence seems to suggest that the deaths did not come as a result of animal cruelty.

“The evidence we’ve collected so far is pointing away from an act of cruelty,” said Rob Halpin, a spokesperson for the animal welfare group.

Halpin was not able to provide specifics, but he told 22News that he was hopeful they would finish their investigation sometime next week.

In a story that the 22News I-Team first brought you on Wednesday, Brenda Coggin said that she found her nine show and breeding dogs dead in their kennel on July 5. Coggin, the owner of Coggin Creek Stables on Granville Road , said she didn’t call police after discovering the dogs dead because there was nothing that could be done for the animals at that point. She then buried the animals in her yard.

"We got done at about 11:00 Thursday night, I didn't want them laying there all night," Coggin said.

She told the I-Team that the dogs had been bleeding through their noses, making her question whether they may have been poisoned by chemicals in the air conditioner.

But Westfield Animal Control Officer Kenneth Frazer told The Westfield News that toxins from the air conditioner have been ruled out as a potential cause.