Say What Now? Baby Found In Home with Decomposing Goat, Maggots, Waste and More Than 40 Animals — Including Raccoons

Authorities report they have “never encountered such a horrific situation” while describing the “unsafe and unsanitary conditions” inside the residence, and they released images of the interior.

A South Carolina couple found themselves behind bars after police found an 8-month-old child inside a home packed with animals, animal waste, maggots and even a decomposing goat carcass.

The Honea Path Police Department announced Monday the arrests of Kayla Renard and Nicholas Foley, who were charged with unlawful conduct toward a child and ill treatment of animals, as well as town ordinance violations, after authorities did a welfare check on their home.

Officers were dispatched to the home after Department of Social Services allegedly “expressed concerns about the unsafe environment for an eight-month-old infant.” Those concerns were apparently justified, as authorities reveal what they found inside the residence.

“In my 30-plus years of service, I have never encountered such a horrific situation involving unsanitary conditions and such a large number of animals,” police said in a statement shared to Facebook.

Among the “severe unsafe and unsanitary conditions” they say “put the infant at risk” was the fact the home was “infested with numerous animals, including raccoons, rabbits, dogs, cats, chickens, and deceased animals.” The animal’s “feces and waste” was found throughout the home, as police called backup from a local shelter, PAWS, to help with the “overwhelming number of animals.”

Dr. Kim Sanders of PAWS told WJCL that 47 animals in total were found — 41 alive, 6 dead — including raccoons, chickens, rabbits and dogs.

“Just the amount of feces and ammonia, it was very, very difficult to breathe,” Sanders told the outlet. “When we were there, there were no bowls for water. It was just absolutely disgusting and just really depressing for my staff and myself. It’s just hard to see animals in that kind of condition. It’s rewarding to be able to take them out of there, but at the same time, they were definitely suffering.”

“Just seeing the animals in that condition, it was evident that they’ve not been out of those crates for quite some time,” Sanders added. “There were maggots crawling in the food bowls.”

But that’s not all they found in the home — as authorities also claim they discovered a “decomposing goat carcass in the bathtub.”

“Once my officers went inside, they discovered just piles of trash and animal feces. There were several different types of animals running around,” Honea Path Police Chief Chris Miller told FOX Carolina. “Raccoons, chickens, cats, dogs. There was a dead goat in the bathtub in the bathroom that had been decomposing for several days.”

“It was just one of the most horrific scenes that I’ve ever been a part of in 30 years,” he added.

Miller also addressed the couple’s apparent lack of emotion during their arrest.

“Sitting there calm and really no emotion. No facial expressions,” he recalled. “You would think that they’d be a little upset that someone was taking their eight-month-old baby, that the police were there and discovered the horrific conditions of this house. You would think that they would have to know that they were in trouble.”

The child was placed in the care of a relative and, per Miller, is “OK” and “was in pretty good condition for the unsanitary condition of the house.”

Renard and Foley were both given $10,000 surety bonds, with FOX reporting Foley posted his bond Tuesday. There’s no record of Renard as a current inmate on the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office website.

If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.

via: TooFab

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