300 cats, dogs being rescued after search warrant served at Lake Hughes property

LAKE HUGHES, Calif. () — Hundreds of cats and dogs were seized Friday from a Lake Hughes property in what officials described as a large-scale rescue operation.

A search warrant for violation of animal welfare laws was served on 266th Street West around 7 a.m., the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control said in an Instagram post.

DACC officials said they found about 300 animals on the property, mostly dogs, with 50-75 cats. They were in the custody of Chris D’Anda of Rock N Pawz Animal Rescue. Officials initially estimated the number of animals found to have been 700.

D’Anda said the raid at her home was unnecessary and wants the animals returned to her care.

“My animals were not a threat to anybody,” she said. “They were healthy. They were cared for.”

The department responded to tips alleging that hundreds of dogs and cats were living in inhumane conditions.

Some animals received treatment on the property before being taken to hospitals and the county’s animal care centers.

D’Anda said she had 238 dogs along with several cats, a pig and a goose. She said she has been building kennels to create an animal rescue.

“The animals were cleaned every day,” she said. “The animals were rotated out into yards every single day. Every single dog is happy.”

But residents of homes in the area said there’s been a foul odor coming from the property for a couple of years.

“It’s been smelly and whenever they go out to feed, I’m assuming that’s what they’re doing, it sounds like the world’s biggest dog fight,” Lake Hughes resident Dave Canfield said.

Another neighbor, Susan Zahanter, said the odor and lack of infrastructure had long been a problem.

“The odor is horrific. There’s no septic system on the property for the kennel. They have gone without dumpsters for months on end,” she said.

The department said it has received complaints for years. It wasn’t until recently that the department was able to obtain a warrant to go in and remove the animals.

D’Anda refused to surrender the animals to department staff but all of them have been removed from the home.

“There’s nothing that I can do. I’m a very stoic person. I’m very sad about the whole situation, and I can’t wait to go to court,” D’Anda said.

More than 70 animal care and control staff were on scene for the rescue operation. Officials say it is the largest number of dogs and cats the DACC has ever seized, and it may be the largest case ever in the country. They said a charity chartered a plane to fly about 27 dogs and several cats to agencies in the Pacific Northwest.

The massive operation is expected to put a strain on resources and housing capacity at county shelters.

“The problem is the cost of bringing a pet back to health after it’s been living in filthy conditions and has parasites, and an illness, or maybe has been attacked by another animal because they’ve got them all in close quarters and they’re fighting over food, or they might be elderly and have heart conditions,” said Teri Austin, president of the Amanda Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to saving dogs and cats in L.A. County and providing medical care.

The county says that no animals will be euthanized as a result of the operation.

“DACC is working with adoption partner rescue groups and other animal welfare agencies to transfer currently adoptable dogs and cats so that there is enough room to admit the rescued animals,” the agency said.

Marcia Mayeda, director of the DACC, is requesting the public’s help to support the rescue and rehabilitation of the animals – either through adoption or donations to the Los Angeles County Animal Care Foundation.

“We have seven animal care centers in the county. Five are taking in animals from this situation. And there they will be examined more thoroughly by veterinarians and medical staff, given any treatments they need, vaccinations. And any sort of attention that they may need,” Mayeda said.

DACC animal care centers are not usually open to the public on Sundays. However, they will be open from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday to expand placement efforts.