Lee County Animal Services removed five dogs from a Lehigh Acres home relating to a backyard breeding operation.
Officers found the dogs living in small cages in the backyard of a home on Douglas Lane. The temperature inside of one of the cages was 112 degrees.
“They were in cages so small, they couldn’t turn around,” Lt. Tony Backhurst said. “The water was so black, it was dirty… so these animals were in absolutely horrendous conditions.”
Backhurst said this breeding operation was linked to another operation they took down in a home just a few yards away from this home. In the first home, officers removed 13 dogs and two deceased dogs. One of the people living in that home, 34-year-old Twinkle Allen, was cited with 12 counts of confining an animal in inhumane conditions.
The investigation is ongoing and Backhurst said they have more houses to check out relating to these operations.