HAY RIVER - A Hay River woman has pleaded not guilty to animal abuse charges.

Linda Hobson, 67, entered the pleas during a brief appearance in Hay River territorial court on Jan. 19.

Hobson faces one count of a charge under the GNWT's Dog Act and two charges under the Criminal Code, two counts for each charge.

The Dog Act charge involves allowing a dog to remain unfed or unwatered long enough to amount to animal cruelty, while the Criminal Code charges involve causing unnecessary suffering to an animal and injuring an animal.

A date was not set for a trial, which the Crown estimated may take about four days. A trial date is expected to be set at a pretrial teleconference on Feb. 7.

The charges against Hobson arise from an incident in late May of last year when 109 dogs were found on a Hay River property in what police described as a hoarding situation.

Veterinarians found three dogs in such distress they were put down, 23 puppies were moved to an animal shelter (and later destroyed by the Town of Hay River) and the rest remained at the kennel on the property.

According to an RCMP news release at the time, the Hay River detachment obtained a search warrant on May 29 after information was received that there were a significant number of dogs being "hoarded" and in distress.

The RCMP and the Town of Hay River, along with two veterinarians from High Level, Alta., found the dogs in various states of health, and some on chain tethers or in cages.

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