Hoarding over 700 animals, nearly half found dead - Reddick, FL

Wednesday, Apr 14, 2010

County: Marion

Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Ignacio Dulzaides

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

A Marion County man is accused of hoarding more than 700 animals at his home on Northwest 100th Street in Ocala (see map). Nearly half of the animals inside Ignacio Dulzaides’ home in Reddick were dead, but nearly 400 were found alive and some exotic.

Animal Services told WFTV it is so overwhelmed managers have no idea how they'll care for so many pets. Marion County Animal Services has never been so busy or so packed. Every kennel is occupied and dozens of bird cages line its hallways.

“This dog has probably never been attended to one time in his life,” volunteer Dale Kennedy said.

The giant mat of fur Dale cut off its back is proof of that.

The animal population basically tripled overnight, when the county got a call about 64-year-old Ignacio Dulzaides and the filth he and his pets were living in. Investigators found more than 700 animals on his 50-acre property and nearly 350 were dead.

Instead of jail, 65-year-old Dulzaides was taken in for a mental evaluation.

The other pets, including snakes, tortoises and cattle, were transported to Marion County Animal Services, where workers have been putting in extra hours. Employees worked 17-hour shifts in order to take care of them. They'll be put up for adoption once the court gives the county custody.

Only sick and aggressive animals will be euthanized.

"This is pretty sad," Kennedy said.

Dale Kennedy is one of the many volunteers pitching in hours of her own.

“These dogs don't seem to have ever had a bath, maybe never in their life. So this is a shocking experience for them,” she said.

On a regular day, the center would use about six 20-pound bags of dog food to feed the animals. Now, since this new group showed up, it's using an additional seven bags. That's more than double and about 150-pounds extra per day.

They brought in 151 dogs Friday morning, not to mention 156 birds. Food is running low and there's still no word how much it is costing the county.

If you want to help the animals that have been rescued, call Marion County Animal Services at (352) 671-8700.

According to court records, this is not the first time Ignacio Dulzaides has been charged with animal neglect. In 1996 Dulzaides was arrested for caging animals with no food or water. In 1995 he was charged with killing a Florida panther.

Case Updates

A judge has decided to award to Marion County Animal Services the legal custody of more than 300 animals seized from a man nearly two months ago. Judge Jim McCune ruled Friday that 64-year-old Ignacio Dulzaides is unfit to properly provide for the animals, and therefore the animals will be officially turned over to animal services. The animals - cattle, dogs, cats, birds, cows, horses, sheep, smaller pets and reptiles, among others - are already under the supervision and care of animal services. Once the ruling becomes official, which should take about two weeks, spokeswoman Elaine DeIorio said the animals will either be sold or will be offered for adoption. The cattle will be sold, with the rest ready for adoption, she said. Of the lot, Delorio said 10 dogs had to be euthanized because they had diseases. Officials say none of the other animals will be euthanized unless it's deemed necessary by a staff veterinarian. On April 15-16, animal services officials removed nearly 380 animals that were living on Dulzaides' 50-acre property at 4632 N.W. 100th St., along with three more animals - two snakes and a leopard gecko - found at the Interstate 75 Super Flea Market. On the 50-acre property, authorities discovered more than 340 dead animals. The discovery was considered by animal officials to be one of the worst animal hoarding cases they've handled. DeIorio said since that the incident occurred, animal services has received an outpouring of food and supplies, which she said has helped greatly in caring for the animals. Not all of the news was bad for Dulzaides. McCune ruled that the snakes and the gecko taken from Dulzaides can be returned to him, and the judge permitted Dulzaides to keep some horses and sheep that are on his property in order to retain his agricultural tax exemption. The judge also said the man can acquire a certain number of livestock again to keep his agricultural tax exemption. McCune also ruled that Dulzaides cannot possess other kinds of animals in the future, and he was ordered to pay the county $5,000 in boarding fees and other expenses for caring for the animals during the court case.

Source: Ocala.Com - June 6, 2010 Update posted on Aug 26, 2010 - 12:47PM

Court records show that Ignacio Dulzaides, the man at the center of an animal hoarding case that local officials say is among the worst they've ever seen, has faced prosecution for animal neglect in the past. In October 1995, the Marion County Sheriff's Office arrested Dulzaides on 32 counts of confining animals without adequate food after numerous ratite birds were found in poor condition at his former residence, 10651 N.W. 60th Ave. Ratite are flightless birds such as emu and ostrich. Dulzaides was acquitted of six misdemeanor counts during a jury trial. The State Attorney's Office dropped the remaining 27 counts. "That was a bunch of garbage. The charges should never have been brought. He didn't do what they accused him of doing," James Reich, Dulzaides' attorney in that case, said Tuesday. But even Reich acknowledged that the recent situation, unlike the 1995 case, stirred something inside him. "When I got out there and I saw what I saw, I had a natural reaction that human beings that love animals have. He had too many, I think," said Reich, the owner of a horse and a dog, who visited the property after receiving a call from Dulzaides' family members. Dulzaides was taken to The Centers for a mental health evaluation Thursday evening, but it was unclear whether he was still in that facility's care. He did not respond to phone calls placed to his residence Tuesday. Those taken to the facility under Florida's Baker Act may be held for up to 72 hours. Were it not for a Progress Energy employee tending to a power outage last week, Dulzaides' animal-carcass-strewn property may have gone unnoticed even longer. By the time Marion County Animal Services arrived Thursday evening at the 50-acre lot at 4632 N.W. 100th St., which Dulzaides has owned for at least 15 years, it was too late for nearly 350 animals of various types, whose remains were discovered. Another 375 animals, including dogs, birds, cats, sheep, horses and reptiles, were observed living among squalid conditions and appearing severely malnourished, according to those who were present. "All around the property, there were small pens with dogs. Some of the animals were living in cages with dead animal carcasses next to them. Essentially, there were animals everywhere," Elaine DeIorio, program coordinator for Animal Services, said Tuesday. Many question how Dulzaides managed to accumulate so many animals without capturing the attention of local officials, or even his neighbors. According to DeIorio, no limit exists to how many animals any one individual can legally own on his or her property, as long as they are kept under "humane conditions." "As we get the complaints, we go out and investigate," DeIorio said. In other words, it is often up to those around such owners to keep vigilant watch. When reached by phone Monday, the Progress Energy employee who called in the complaint to Animal Services declined to comment about the exact circumstances leading up to his discovery. The laborious two-day effort to remove the dead animals and bring the surviving ones to the Animal Center - where, according to DeIorio, bird cages are now "pretty much lining [the] hallways" - has been called "one of the worst hoarding situations" local officials have ever seen. And there have been some pretty bad cases in recent memory, according to DeIorio. Some that come to mind include Ileana Verguizas, who was found hoarding 432 animals, including 150 birds and 74 geese, among other pets, in her Citra home last August, and Christine Watson, who was found in possession of 79 unkempt mixed-breed dogs in her Summerfield mobile home in November. At Dulzaides' residence in Martin, officials found dead animals in cages, in feed bags and in plastic bags in freezers. They entered one mobile home on the property that was filled with animal feces and human waste. Dulzaides, 64, has not been the subject of any Animal Services' investigations in the past. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, he has held a permit to sell exotic birds and mammals at a local flea market since 2002, but has not been cited for any past violations. Given Dulzaides' past brushes with the law and his current predicament, it is likely he may suffer from a disorder widely recognized in the medical and psychiatric community: animal hoarding. Such people own a greater than typical number of animals and then deny they are unable to provide minimal standards of care and nutrition. "This is an attempt to make up for some kind of deficit in their lives, just like any other addictive behavior," said Gary Patronek, a veterinarian and vice president for animal welfare at the Animal Rescue League of Boston. "It [taking in animals] is a fix,' " he said. "Unfortunately, it's a temporary fix that never lasts." Animal Services is compiling a report to forward to the State Attorney's Office next week for possible prosecution of Dulzaides. On Tuesday, Animal Services issued a press release stating it also had rescued a python-type snake, a yellow rat snake and a leopard gecko from the I-75 Super Flea Market over the weekend, which Dulzaides left behind at a rental booth. The agency also has been fielding dozens of phone calls from concerned citizens, and accepting donations to help with care of the rescued animals. Still needed are donations of bird cages with wheels, bird toys of all sizes, turtle and rabbit food, a heat lamp, live crickets, coastal hay and Timothy alfalfa, hammocks and pouches for sugar gliders and cattle wormer. "We are grateful for the outpouring of support from the community," said Animal Services director Jill Lancon. "The public has been so generous." Animal Services has emergency custody of the menagerie. If the agency wins permanent custody through the court system, staff will assess the animals for adoption. While it is unclear what type of legal action, if any, may be taken against Dulzaides this time around, his former attorney said he hopes the state exercises restraint. "I'm hopeful that the state will do something besides charge him with a criminal offense," Reich said.

Source: Ocala.Com - April 21, 2010 Update posted on Aug 26, 2010 - 12:43PM

References

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