The Acadia Chapter of the Humane Society of Louisiana has been working non-stop for several months, responding to reports of animal abuse in a tri-parish area: Acadia, St. Landry, and Evangeline Parishes. The group was established more than eight years ago and has investigated thousands of calls; however, in recent weeks, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of calls the agency has received. The group is very small, with only a handful of volunteers who respond to the calls and care for the surrendered or confiscated animals.

Janet Lyons, a mother of five and who has received awards for her volunteer work in the past, heads up the local chapter and acts as the group's principle cruelty investigator. Ms. Lyons often works closely with law and code enforcement agencies to help enforce and uphold the local and state anti-cruelty ordinances and also has housed and nursed back to health thousands of injured and abandoned animals.