DANIA BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - A case of animal neglect has led to a criminal investigation after, authorities said, more than 100 cats were found living in filthy conditions inside of a mobile home in Deerfield Beach.
The woman who lives in the trailer is a cat rescue owner who is now being investigated by the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Diana Salcedo, who owns her own cat rescue, tipped off investigators.
Cellphone video provided by Salcedo captured BSO deputies and animal control officers outside the mobile home.
“Oh, it smells so bad right now,” Salcedo is heard saying. “Oh, [expletive]. Oh, my God, the officer’s almost vomiting.”
“Disgusting,” the officer is heard saying.
The conditions were less than ideal for the cats in the woman’s care.
“To see somebody, like, scamming the community in that way, getting all these funds and not using them for the care of the cats, and instead of helping them, she was actually torturing them,” said Salcedo.
Salcedo, who owns her own cat rescue, called for a welfare check on the mobile home after hearing the woman who owns the cats had been neglecting and not feeding them for more than a week.
“We knocked, and we heard this horrendous screeching from cats. When they heard somebody at the door, they were screaming,” said Salcedo, “but I had to do something, and I never expected this to be that bad. I thought it was just, 10 days she had been in the hospital, the cats are neglected, let me go see how we can help.'”
But when the BSO deputies and animal control officers showed up, they saw how horrible the conditions were.
“They came out with their eyes watering, because it was a mix of ammonia, feces and dead cats,” said Salcedo.
The cats are now receiving necessary care at the Broward County Animal Care and Adoption Center in Dania Beach.
“Some of the cats are a little bit thin, and some of them have maybe overgroomed themselves. It’s a little bit stressful to live with that many friends in one space, but also that many cats using litter boxes in an enclosed space,” said Emily Wood, the director of Broward County Animal Care. “A lot of them have the sniffles because the air quality maybe wasn’t the best.”
As of Saturday night, it’s unclear whether or not the cat rescue owner will be facing criminal charges.
Most of the cats that were pulled from the mobile home will be up for adoption in the coming days once they’ve been vaccinated. For more information, click here.
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