Nearly 50 Animals Seized From Mobile County Home

THEODORE, Ala. (WPMI) The Mobile County animal shelter is at full capacity after dozens of animals were seized from a home in Theodore.Authorities said the animals were living in deplorable conditions. The animals are on legal hold now. Hopefully soon they can be adopted. Officials said 22 dogs, 14 cats and 10 birds were forced to live in their own feces for several months. Now they're being treated by veterinarians while the District Attorney's office looks over the case and decides whether to file charges against the homeowners. It's almost like a case of animal hoarding, keeping animals on the property and they can't take care of them, said County Humane Officer Carmelo Miranda. Officers seized the animals from a home in the 4900 block of Bream Drive after working the case since September. It's just basically too many animals . The officers have been out there constantly and it's come to the point they're just not complying, said Miranda. They weren't cleaning up after the animals. There were a lot of feces on the floor. The deputy on scene, he described the smell. The only thing he described worse was a dead body, said Michael Crabtree, animal control officer for Mobile County. Officers said a few of the animals are slightly malnourished and many have minor health issues. The main issue is the unsanitary conditions the animals were kept in, said Crabtree. We tried getting a response from the pet owners Tuesday but no one appeared to be home. They were very upset we had to take the animals today, which is understandable. No one wants to see their animals taken away. But we have to do what's best for the animals in this case, said Crabtree. There are changes in laws that need to be done. They need to look at putting restrictions on the amount of animals you can have and set some standards where you can tell owners what we expect in animal care, said Miranda. County officials aren't releasing the names of the homeowners in this case.But they tell me officers have had to respond to animal complaints about the same people when they were living at a previous location. This most recent case only adds to the overcrowding issue at the county shelter. The county said it is still looking for homes for most of the animals that were seized from the S.H.A.C.K. in Semmes last year. The birds taken Tuesday are now in the care of the South Alabama Caged Bird Society.