OCALA, Fla. (AP) — More than 100 dogs have been rescued in Florida and West Virginia after people tipped authorities to their neglect.
In Florida, The Ocala Star-Banner reports that Janet Manfredo, 59, was charged Tuesday with animal cruelty after police found 56 poodles and cockapoos living in squalor in the home she shares with her 3-year-old grandson and 84-year-old father.
Animal control officers removed the dogs from Manfredo’s house on Oct. 5 after neighbors complained of a strong odor. The child was removed by the Department of Children and Families.
Separately in West Virginia, humane officers found the same number of dogs — at least 56 — on the property of a woman in her 80s, including dozens that were chained inside a crumbling barn. Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association Director of Development, Jessie Shafer, told news outlets that the owner signed 49 of the dogs over to the humane association.