Over five months, at least 17 dogs died of heat stroke, dehydration and injuries sustained in dogfights at Dogtown Ranch, a Central Texas dog sanctuary, according to Aaron Smith, a caretaker at the facility, who said that he buried them.
Smith went on to say that parts of the facility were filthy and infested with rats, and dogs routinely suffered from medical neglect. He included all this in a June 29 email to Shalimar Oliver, investigator with Humane World for Animals (formerly known as The Humane Society for the United States).
Nationwide concern over the facility grew in late July after the Houston Press published a story on July 27 detailing accounts and photos from former volunteers who also posted photos and videos on social media.
However, law enforcement officers whose jurisdiction includes the Rockdale facility, about an hour outside Austin, have continued to state they found no evidence of animal mistreatment, and no one affiliated with Dogtown has been charged with a crime.
In an August 6 press release, the Milam County Sheriff’s Office stated that representatives of the Dallas-based ASPCA of Texas visited the property July 9 and found no evidence of malfeasance. The animal welfare organization’s animal cruelty investigator and forensic veterinarian found no signs of neglect or abuse requiring emergency removal.
A spokesperson for the ASPCA of Texas declined multiple requests for comment about its inspectors’ Dogtown walk-through. A representative of the Milam County District Attorney’s office, which allegedly viewed photos of dogs taken during a July inspection, also would not comment on what she referred to as an ongoing law enforcement investigation.
While caretaker Smith has largely remained quiet publicly, emails and phone conversations between him and a former Dogtown volunteer show how he worked behind the scenes to share information about the animals’ conditions. (Smith, a registered sex offender, is the boyfriend of Dogtown owner Angela Sera).
At a June 29 meeting, the former volunteer helped Smith compose the statement to Humane World animal cruelty case manager Shalimar Oliver. Oliver referred requests for comment to a Humane World spokesperson, who has not responded to questions about the email. So it’s unclear if Oliver ever read Smith’s email or forwarded its contents to animal cruelty investigators in Texas.
In that email, Smith provided what he said were names, dates, and health factors that contributed to multiple dogs’ deaths between February and June 2026. (In the email, “GSD” refers to German shepherds).
“Rottie boy is suffering from a heat stroke last week and is lame and peeing himself with medical neglect and in bad pain.6/29/26,” Smith wrote.
“I, Aaron Smith… buried 17 + dead dogs that died of reasons below and got home and she was burning a GSD that was killed by other GSDs, it smelled so bad…
Janie 2/28/26 RIP froze
RAVEN 2/28/26 RIP froze
Silver 2/28/26 froze (burned)
3/20/26 a F. GSD dog jumped and killed by GSD fighting, Sera does nothing and I buried her.”
Smith also alleged that, in late March, a dog named Spot had “an abscess burst from med neglect, Sera shot to kill him and bagged him, I buried him when I got home from work.” (Spot, physically lame, can be seen being dragged by Sera in one video former volunteers shared with the Press and posted widely online).
Smith’s inventory continued:
“Declan 4/17/26 RIP UNKNOWN cause of death.
Payaso 4/24/26 starvation, UNKNOWN cause of death.
Princess 4/24/26 heat stoke, UNKNOWN cause of death.
Bolt 5/2/26 dehydration, UNKNOWN cause of death.
Fluffy 5/6/26 killed by Anthony & Homie, no medical care, Sera had me put him in her shower, he bled out in her shower over night and was dead in the am….Homer 6/12/26 heat stroke no water, dehydrated, UNKNOWN cause of death.
GSD 6/15/26 killed going thru barbed wire fence in back field, UNKNOWN cause of death.
Jack 6/18/26 killed by GSD pack fighting.”
Smith also alleged witnessing “feces full of maggots in kennel room with live dogs, pee, where she feeds them” and “about 2 dozen dogs in cages in feces and urine all over with no water, we only let them out every 3-5 days if at all, they eat their poop, they are dehydrated and full of worms.” He also claimed to witness “mold, rat infestation and rat feces in home, all areas where dogs and horses are fed.”
Additionally Smith claimed in recorded phone conversations obtained by the Houston Press that he has at least 1,200 photos showing poor conditions at Dogtown. Smith explained to the caller, whose identity the Press is keeping confidential, that he was reluctant to share his findings with the Milam County’s sheriff’s office because he feared retaliation from Sera. Specifically, Smith said he was concerned about losing access to expensive tools he kept on Sera’s property.
However, Smith also alleged that Milam County Lieutenant Sam Ferguson knew that Smith had relevant evidence but that Smith could not be forthcoming in Sera’s presence. (Ferguson and Sheriff Mike Clore have limited their comments to official press releases).
Since volunteers shared alarming photos videos and personal notes regarding the condition of animals at Dogtown in July animal advocates have flooded the Milam County Sheriff’s Office with emails and phone calls requesting information from Sera about the condition of dogs sent there from rescues in California, New Mexico and throughout Texas.
While neither Smith nor Sera have commented publicly on the condition of these dogs recorded conversations include a claim that a dog from a Santa Barbara County shelter died on June 18 under questionable circumstances.
Smith gave conflicting accounts of the death of Stetson, a Labrador Retriever mix sent to Dogtown in 2025. In the July 2026 phone conversation, Smith alleged that Sera told him the dog died of heat stroke. But Smith also said he was concerned that Stetson may have become ill after feeding on the carcass of a dead hog on the property. (According to a volunteer who helped raise money to send Stetson from California to Dogtown, Sera was paid $4,000 to take him in).
However, Smith told the Press in an August 6 text that Stetson was alive. He also reiterated statements from the Milam County Sheriff’s Office that no evidence of animal cruelty was found, and that any claims otherwise were lies spread by disgruntled former volunteers.
Yet Smith’s recorded phone conversations contradict an important piece of the Sheriff’s statement– that inspectors were allowed access to the entire property.
In his phone conversation, Smith claimed that an unspecified number of dogs were transferred to Sera’s bedroom and bathroom, and that inspectors agreed not to enter those areas. (Smith noted that the dogs in those rooms could be heard and stated “I imagine they knew they was in there”).
He also stated that, two days before the inspection, Sera’s friend and one-time Dogtown board member Tina Schnetzler donated an air conditioning unit for a room in Sera’s home where dogs were kept.
Smith also claimed in the conversation that inspectors asked him on July 9 how deceased dogs were disposed of but didn’t ask about any unnatural causes of death.
“They can still dig them up and do [an] autopsy on them,” Smith said, “because I wrapped them up in blankets and stuff.”
After former volunteers posted more photos and videos online, and spoke on Facebook with animal welfare advocate Paul Mueller, the Milam County Sheriff’s Office was inundated with phone calls and emails.
While Sera has largely maintained composure online, chalking up the images posted by former volunteers as AI-generated, a text conversation she had with an associate tells a different story.
The associate, who the Press is not identifying, forwarded screenshots of a conversation he had with Sera to the Milam County Sheriff’s Office on August 11. According to the screenshots Sera stated “the sheriffs [sic] imposed more requirements on me today because they got 600 emails over the weekend pressuring them. I get inspections now twice a day. Have to move 50 dogs. Probably euthanize most. There’s nowhere for that many to go.”
The associate described the Sheriff’s Office response to him as “lukewarm.”
