Dogs, cats, rodents, but also birds and marsupials … A total of 245 animals were taken from a couple living in Florida, due to the unsanitary conditions of the property. Their 3 children were given to a parent.
On Sunday, October 20, police in Edgewater , a town on the east coast of Florida, carried out an inspection at the home of Gregg and Susan Nelson , 57 and 43. Initially, the check concerned the well-being of their 3-year-old children aged 8, 9 and 10, reports The Daytona Beach News Journal . But in the end, the authorities also discovered 245 animals held there in extremely poor hygienic and health conditions.
Photos released by the police do show very dirty rooms , with floors littered with old clothes, sheets, rotten food, excrement, urine and all manner of trash.
In one of the images, we can see a black Chihuahua lying on a blanket and surrounded by filth. The little dog appears very thin there and has lost a good part of its hair .
On another, it is a larger dog with a white coat that we see. The animal is locked in a cage .
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They are one of four dogs that lived in the house, along with two cats, hamsters 4, 12 rabbits, 14 birds, 9 guinea pigs (one 10 e was found dead), 10 sugar gliders, 7 bearded dragons ‘Australia , 95 mice , 60 adult rats and 23 baby rats. The animals were transferred to the refuge of the city’s animal control service , which appealed for donations to be able to cope with this massive arrival. As for the children , they were taken care of by the Department of Children and Families , while waiting to be entrusted to a relative .
Susan and Gregg Nelson were arrested on the spot by police. A 3rd person, Melissa Hamilton (49), seems also involved in the case, but has not been arrested. The man and the 2 women are being prosecuted for child abuse and animal cruelty .
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