The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a Pensacola Beach woman and charged her with several animal neglect counts.
Toni Amaro Phelps, 40, was arrested Friday night and charged with six counts of causing cruel death, pain or suffering to an animal, six counts of abandonment of an animal, and one count of a nuisance injurious to health.
Phelps was arrested at the Escambia County Jail after a warrant was issued for her arrest. Her bond has been set at $36,500 and she was released later Friday night.
Phelps was the home owner at 1675 Winding Shore Dr. in Navarre, a home in foreclosure, officers contacted after discovering seven dead animals on Tuesday while investigating a nuisance complaint.
Deputies had previously gone to the home in an attempt to make contact with the homeowner. During those visits they observed minor nuisance violations.
Tuesday, Haines indicated the sheriff's office had received information concerning possible dead animals.
After contacting the hone owner and obtaining a search warrant based on seeing a dead dog and dead cat and an empty birdcage through the Florida room as well as an extreme amount of feces and urine covering the floor.
Once inside officers found three dead dogs, three dead cats, and a dead bird inside the home at 1675 Winding Shore Dr., and the inside of the home was covered in animal feces and urine.
During the deputies investigation it was learned that Phelps had abandoned the property sometime around March or April of this year.
Phelps originally denied abandoning the animals and stated she returned to the residence one a month to get her mail.
After denying the animals were hers, Santa Rosa County Animal Services showed Phelps the remains of two dogs and she reportedly admitted they were hers.
According to Sgt. Scott Haines, local veterinarians were also able to help determine the dead animals belonged to Phelps.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Arrest made in animal abandonment case