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 can'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 . Rescue workers moved them to a shelter in Lebanon, Tennessee .