The Loudoun County District Court on Sept. 19 awarded custody of nine pit bull and pit bull mix dogs to county Animal Control.

The dogs were seized Sept. 7 from two men traveling on the Dulles Greenway after an Animal Control officer, en route to another call, saw the men on the side of the road with one of the puppies and stopped to assist.

Tremain Dene Johnson, 44, of Lithonia, Ga., and Harry Ortice Puckett, 33, of Elgin, Ill., were arrested and charged with importing pet dogs into the Commonwealth of Virginia from another state without certificate of veterinary inspection, a Class 1 misdemeanor, in connection with the incident. They are scheduled to appear in General District Court on these charges Oct. 10.

Each charge carries a maximum one-year jail sentence and $2,500 in fines.

Ten dogs were seized during the incident, which were of varying ages and health, according to Animal Control.

Officials could not comment further on the health of the dogs at the time of the incident.

However, one of the dogs was seriously ill and recently died while undergoing treatment from the department’s veterinarian, county officials said Sept. 21.

Many of the dogs continue to receive veterinary care due to pre-existing medical conditions and illness.

The dogs will undergo a temperament assessment and behavioral evaluation. If they pass, they can be placed in a shelter for adoption, according to Adrienne Burton, chief of Loudoun County Animal Control.

Under Virginia law, no dog can be found to be dangerous or vicious solely because it is a particular breed, or crossbreed.

However, a Loudoun County law forbids Animal Control from adopting out pit bull breeds.

Instead, the department gives the dogs to nonprofit groups that sometimes put the animals through a second round of temperament testing before they’re allowed to be put up for adoption, according to Thomas Koenig, director of Loudoun County Animal Services.