Nearly 100 malnourished sled dogs, some blind and about 30 pregnant, have been taken from a Quebec property in the Laurentides region by the SPCA.

Their owner had fallen into financial hardship and been unable to care for the dogs. The animals had spent much of their lives chained to metal poles, except for when they were used for sled runs about two months of the year.

"There were inadequate doghouses," Scotlund Haiseley of Human Society International told CTV Montreal. "There's been no food out here or water for many of these dogs. We got here just in time for many of them."

For some of the dogs, it was too late. Their decomposing bodies were found in an open pit on the property.

The SPCA received a tip about the animals a week ago, and had been negotiating with the owner to take the animals from the property.

The owner agreed, in exchange for a promise by the SPCA not to pursue charges. On Tuesday, the SPCA moved the 97 dogs to a temporary care facility in Val-Morin, a municipality in the Laurentides region.

"What we needed was to save the dogs, so that's why we worked on convincing the owner," said Corinne Gonzales, a spokesperson for SPCA Laurentians-Labelle.

During negotiations, SPCA members had been allowed on the property to feed the dogs.

Many of the animals were 10 years old.

"These dogs have lived their entire lives on these chains," said Haiseley. "They're made to work winter-long, and these are the confines they get to come to everyday," he said.

Most of the dogs have already found future homes across North America.

With a report by CTV Montreal's Rob Lurie