By Sam Borsato - @BorsatoSam on Twitter

Milk River Dogs documentary sends a message of “hope and resilience”

Mar 27, 2017 | 5:26 AM

RED DEER – It was one of the biggest projects 17-year-old Josiah Albers has ever undertaken, but it’s an experience that he calls “absolutely amazing and super gratifying.”

The story began in December 2014, when 60 dogs were surrendered to a local peace officer from a rural property near the town of Milk River after a member of the public issued a complaint, concerned about the well-being of the animals. Another 141 dogs were removed by a team of Alberta SPCA peace officers on January 13, bringing the total to 201. 

“These dogs were all malnourished and dehydrated, and from what our officer could see when he attended the property, they didn’t have sufficient shelter, especially from winter conditions. The majority of them were on heavy chains that were staked around the yard,” Roland Lines, Alberta SPCA Communications Manager, explained at the time of the seizure.

Officers later returned to the property, where they found that five additional dogs had died. An autopsy confirmed that they died of starvation.

The removal is still one of the largest from a single property by the Alberta SPCA to date. 

Week-in-review: Federal Budget, water agreements and success for tourism industry

Apr 20, 2024

What's Happening in Lethbridge this weekend: April 19, 2024

Apr 19, 2024

What's Happening in Lethbridge this week: April 15, 2024

Apr 15, 2024

April Dawn Irving has since been charged with one count of cruelty to animals, and also faces 13 more charges under the Animal Protection Act that carry fines up to $20,000. Lines went on to note that a successful conviction could result in prohibiting or limiting Irving’s ability to own any animals in the future. A warrant remains for her arrest at this time, after she failed to appear in court on two separate occasions.

Albers took on the Milk River Dogs documentary as an independent film, handling a majority of the filming all on his own. The Red Deer documentarian explained in an interview with Lethbridge News Now that his father worked at a kennel that took in 12 of the 201 dogs, and was inspired to tell their story.

“I think the reason that the story really attracted me is just the resilience of these dogs,” Albers said. “They came out of a very dark situation, but every time that we saw them in the current news they were all really doing very well. They had all been rehabilitated and they were all very happy dogs.”

Josiah’s father, Don Albers, set up a Kickstarter campaign in June 2016 to raise money to help his son be able to produce the film. With 48 generous donations, the fundraiser surpassed its goal of $5000 by more than $300.

Josiah then spent the latter part of last year following the stories of the owners who had adopted some of the dogs. He noted that he was challenged to figure out a lot of the filming “on the fly,” and focused on how the documentary was developing with each story.

“To see the dogs and all the pictures and stuff of where they had been, and the stories of how neglected they had been, then to see them in real life now in such amazing condition and such happy dogs… That was an amazing experience that I really enjoyed taking part of.”

Albers said he still keeps in touch with some of the owners, and hinted at a possible follow up project in the future, though he couldn’t confirm any details.

Milk River Dogs was released in mid-February, and is available for $20 online. Plenty of copies have already been sold, but Albers wants to sell even more in order to raise awareness for rescue dogs as well as local films.

“I think the story is really one of hope and resilience in spite of adversity,” Albers said, when asked what message he hopes his documentary will send. 

“Regardless of the darkness and hard times that someone or something comes out of, they can get through it with a loving community supporting them.”