1,000 Exotic Animals Found Dead In Warehouse With 2,000 More Housed In Grisly Conditions Still Alive

Authorities stumbled upon a gruesome sight and one with blatant evidence of horrific cruelty to animals in a Southern California industrial complex on Friday. More than 1,000 dead exotic animals littered a warehouse in this complex with another 2,000 or so animals still alive and left in the heat without ventilation.

The rescue workers who entered the complex could not find food or water for the birds housed in this filthy warehouse. Birds, reptiles, and fish were among the dead animals, with the floors covered with feces and trash. With many animals still alive, the authorities were in rescue mode, with several different agencies coming together to help get the live animals to safe surroundings.

According to Fox News, the Inland Valley Humane Society was on the scene, and they described the horrendous conditions the surviving animals were enduring when found. These were the same conditions that killed over 1,000 animals that couldn’t survive in this warehouse while living in the absence of care and ventilation.

Montclair Police Department Sgt. Minook told KTLA 5 News what they discovered when they responded to the commercial building in the 4600 Block of Arrow Highway. The industrial complex is about 33 miles east of Los Angeles. The dead animals littered the building, but there were about 2,000 live chickens along with parakeets and exotic birds that were still alive and needed rescuing from these horrific conditions.

The people from the Humane Society said the animals were kept in “deplorable” and “appalling” conditions. Police had arrested the owner of these animals earlier in the week on charges unrelated to the animals. The owner’s name has not been released, but this person faces “felony animal cruelty charges” for the conditions these animals were left in at the warehouse. You can get a glimpse at one area of the deplorable conditions in that warehouse in the tweet below.

More than 1,000 dead exotic animals found in California complexhttps://t.co/726GiV9Fl5

— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 4, 2017

Peggy King, who works in the same complex as an office manager for a different company unrelated to the owner of the exotic animals, spoke with reporters.

She said, “It’s sad. You’re kind of relieved … You just always had that little nervousness walking by his building or going to the mailbox, just because it was strange, the activity that was going on in the last few months – it got bad.”

Several agencies are now conducting an investigation into this grisly find along with the law enforcement agencies. This includes the Department of Health, the Humane Society, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. According to officials, Exotic birds, chickens, parakeets and exotic fish, along with a few other exotic species were saved.

The scene called for an immediate response as the animals that were still alive needed to be taken somewhere so they’d get food, water, and ventilation. The animals will be taken to various agencies where they will be examined and receive proper care. They are part of an ongoing investigation, so they won’t be put up for adoption immediately.

[Featured Image by Jim Parkin/Shutterstock]