Animal Control Officer: 'Some Nights I Don't Sleep'

Hudson Animal Control Officer Jana McMillan said it's hard to wrap her head around what a local pet groomer was thinking when she tried to pass off her own sick dog as one that someone else had abandoned on her doorstep.

"It was a poor decision in her mind to resolve a problem. She's being prosecuted for failing to provide care for her dog, which was well beyond needing care," McMillan said.

Michelle Hogan, 44, of 85 Barbara Lane, Hudson, was arrested Sept. 3, charged with cruelty to animals. McMillan said Hogan failed to get necessary care for her 2-year-old Great Dane, Sammie, which had several tumors and an obvious injury to her tail.

Hogan originally reported to police that someone had abandoned the dog, leaving it tied to the door of her pet grooming business on Lowell Road in Hudson, Dunk'n Dogs.

However, Hogan was the dog's rightful owner, McMillan said.

"The most obvious thing that needed treating right away was her tail. Excuse me for saying it so bluntly, but it looked like hamburger meat; it was raw and infected," McMillan said.

McMillan said the initial call by Hogan didn't add up, so on Aug. 28 McMillan decided to put Sammie's story with a photo out to the public in hope that the truth would emerge.

"I thought it was strange when she turned the dog in. I investigated all the local businesses and there were no witnesses – not one. Also, the dog has other injuries she didn't mention. Appealing to the public was the only way I knew we'd get the assistance we needed in resolving this," McMillan said.

Hogan turned herself in and is due in court on Sept. 19. She faces two misdemeanor charges, McMillan said.

As for Sammie, she is on the rebound. Her tail is healing and she has been placed in a permanent home.

"Sammie immediately had a place to go – I didn't turn this one over to a rescue group because I work with Coastal Maine Great Dane Rescue, and they advised me on the medical situation, and timeline on treating her, and how to place the dog," McMillan said. "Frankly, I didn't want the dog to go into foster care and still not have a permanent home, not after what she's been through. I made the decision to put her into a permanent home and stable environment."

They are still awaiting test results for the multiple tumors Sammie has before giving her a clean bill of health.

"She's doing amazing. She's resilient and thriving," McMillan said.

McMillan said what made this case so difficult was trying to understand Hogan's motivation for being untruthful, and worse, allowing her own dog to suffer.

"She is in a prime position, as a dog groomer, to know this dog needed care. Nobody can get inside somebody else's head, but the glaring issue was how badly infected the dog's tail was. I understand there are expenses, but until you figure out the big picture as to what her medical issues were, all she needed was antibiotics. You can get a prescription filled at Sam's Club," McMillan said.

As an animal control officer, McMillan sees it all. Some cases are tougher to shake than others.

"Some night's I don't sleep – this one kept me awake. It's a good feeling to follow through with prosecution, for the animal's sake. Sometimes it's rare that we get to prosecute someone. Not that it's about prosecution, but it feels like justice is served to some extent," McMillan said.

She said she hopes the public understands that, while she's a police officer, she is also an advocate for animals, and her main duty is to be of service.

"Animal Control Officers are here in the community to help – if the public can get past the fact that we're law enforcement," McMillan said.