Rescue workers tasked with freeing almost 100 dogs that had been kept locked up in a blacked-out barn in Tennessee this week say they were met with fear when approaching the animals , but not their own . 'They had been suffering a very long time . I saw little to no emotion , and when I did see an emotion , I saw fear , ' said Scotlund Haisley , president of Animal Rescue Corps , which led the rescue operation . The dogs , who had been living in complete darkness , were found last Saturday in the barn in Manchester ; many emaciated , 'living in several inches of their own waste ' and close to death . According to The Huffington Post , some had acid burns from the ammonia of their own urine , and there was also a wheelbarrow in the barn filled with 10 dead dogs piled on top of each other and covered in maggots . The property owner , identified as 64-year-old Caroline Irby , was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty on Monday and booked into the Coffee County jail on $ 10,000 bond . Scroll down for video . Deplorable conditions : Animal Rescue Corps workers help free almost 100 dogs that had been locked up in cages in a barn in Manchester , Tennessee , surrounded by their own waste on Saturday . In shock : Workers described the animals as being overcome with fear after living in tiny cages and total darkness for an unknown period . Filthy : Some of the breeds were unrecognizable because the dogs were covered in so much waste . Freed : The female owner of the Tennessee property has been charged with animal cruelty . Hoarding is an illness , authorities said . Rescue : The 97 dogs were in conditions that Animal Rescue Corps described as the worst they 've ever seen . Squalor : The dogs were kept in the barn without any windows in Coffee County , Tennessee . Safe : Each of the dogs were assessed individually and then sent for treatment in Lebanon , Tennessee . Unrecognizable : The dogs were mostly all adults and a variety of breeds including Golden Retrievers , Shih Tzus , Yorkshire Terriers and Border Collies , but some were so dirty it was hard to tell . Charged : The property owner , identified as 64-year-old Caroline Irby , was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty on Monday and booked into the Coffee County jail on $ 10,000 bond . The dogs were mostly all adults and a variety of breeds including Golden Retrievers , Shih Tzus , Yorkshire Terriers and Border Collies . Haisley said bringing the animals outside was a stunning sight . 'Something magical happened that I had never seen before in by 26-year-old long career , ' Haisley added to The HuffPost . 'When we brought everyone out , they all did the same thing . 'They shot their noses up to the sky , and what we believe they were doing was absorbing the sunshine and the oxygen . ' Jackie Jones , a Smyrna-based vet , was one of many people enlisted to treat the dogs due to the overwhelming number that needed help . Many more volunteers joined the effort . 'Words ca n't describe how it was , ' Jones told The Daily News Journal . 'It was deplorable . There was so much neglect . ' The animals were checked out individually and moved to a shelter in Lebanon , where their treatment continued . Help : Dozens of workers and volunteers attend to the dogs as part of the massive rescue operation . Much happier : The animals were relocated to a shelter in Lebanon , Tennessee , where they are recovering . Nearly 100 dogs were rescued Sunday from a property in Coffee County , Tennessee , where officials say they were living in total darkness inside a squalid , windowless barn . Thankful : Workers said the dogs turned their heads and noses to the sun once outside . Besides being hungry and incredibly filthy , the biggest problem with most of them was light deprivation , which brought on heart problems and infections . Animal Rescue Corps is expected to stay and care for the dozens of dogs for at least one-and-a-half to two weeks and give them medical grooming , veterinary exams , vaccines and decompression time , the DNJ reported . To donate to Animal Rescue Corps , go to www.animalrescuecorps.org/donate . Assessment : Besides being hungry and incredibly filthy , the biggest problem with most of them was light deprivation , which brought on heart problems and infections . Deplorable : Many of the cages were rusted shut and the dogs had not appeared to have been fed in some time . Ongoing effort : The operation will continue for another one to two weeks , such was the state of the dogs . Neighbors described Irby as a nice woman . They said they did not ever suspect she was a dog hoarder or saw any evidence there were so many animals on the land . It is unclear how police first came to find the dogs hidden in the barn .
Caroline Irby , 64 , was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty Monday . Almost 100 dogs were found locked up inside a windowless barn on her property in Manchester , Tennessee , without food or water . They were emaciated and 'living in several inches of their own waste ' 10 other dogs were found dead stacked in a wheelbarrow . A man who had been missing for two days after he went swimming at the beach near his home has been found.