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“The trains are too loud and no animal would sit there and be hit,” she said.
Instead, she said she believes the animals are being killed, then placed near or on the tracks.
Whoever may be abusing these animals, Melampy said, needs to seek mental health assistance.
“It’s disgusting,” she said. “This is the makings of a serial killer. There is an issue there. Obviously something is wrong with them and they’re a danger to our society.”
The animals were first found this summer when neighbors and animal rescuers reported that bones and decaying carcasses were discovered along railroad tracks, Melampy said. More have been found recently, she said.
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There were Facebook posts recently that claimed 50 to 100 animals were found near the tracks. But Melampy and others searched the area Monday night and only smelled one fresh dead animal. The group will expand its search for “the dumping ground” of dead animals, she said, adding that they will find whoever is killing the animals.
“We’re all over it,” she said.
The group has contacted the Butler County Dog Warden. Melampy said the dog warden is investigating the animal cruelty cases “very seriously.”
Butler County Dog Warden Supervisor Kurt Merbs said his department is patrolling the railroad tracks and the surrounding area more often to hopefully reduce the possibility of animals of being killed and dumped. The cats and dogs found by the railroad tracks last summer were checked but none had microchip identifications.
He recommends for those who live in that area of Middletown to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Butler County Dog Warden at 513-887-7297.
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