The owner of a local cat-rescue nonprofit has been charged with 33 counts of animal cruelty after Anchorage police say they found dozens of cats, dogs and birds sick and wallowing in their own waste at her home and shelter.

Police say Deborah Ann Allen, 54, has for years hoarded cats and dogs, turtles, birds, lizards and a rabbit, cramming the critters in her cluttered Sand Lake home that reeked of feces and urine and had swarms of flies inside.

When police searched her home at 7101 Kitlisa Drive, they found 23 cats, 8 dogs and 1 bird, many of them malnourished, dirty and with untreated injuries, according to an affidavit filed in court by Detective Jackie Conn. At the Chateau Pampered Purr shelter in Midtown, a nonprofit run by Allen, authorities found 50 or more cats in similar straits.

  (Photo courtesy of Mike Nederbrock/KTUU-DT.  Allen's home where 32 animals have been removed)

"It's not unusual for (animal hoarders) to present themselves as rescuers," Conn said. "Typically, I'd have to say most, if not all, of them have good intentions. But when you get so many animals in a small space, it's almost impossible to keep above the illnesses and that kind of thing. It's a difficult situation."

According to Conn's affidavit, city Animal Care and Control began citing Allen for neglecting her animals in October 2004. Since then, Animal Control has received at least eight complaints about unclean living conditions and 5 more for loose dogs and cats at the Allen properties.

"In multiple complaints animal control officers and sometimes APD officers have described a foul urine and feces smell that can be detected from outside of the house on Kitlisa. The house is described as having feces outside and inside on the ground," Conn wrote. "At least twice officers commented on swarms of flies in the house."

Conn got a search warrant for the home Sept. 30 and served it last week. Officers entering the 3,500-square-foot home found it cluttered and dirty, some rooms so full of personal property they "could not be entered," according to the affidavit. Everything was covered in animal hair and kennels were strewn about the home.

Police say all the animals were found in a dimly lit two-car garage. There was no air circulation and a small animal door leading to an enclosure outside, the flooring of which was spattered in feces.

Many cats had respiratory problems, including eye and nose discharges, sneezing, coughing and labored breathing, according to police. Some appeared undernourished and one had a bad infection around its left ear, Conn wrote.

Dogs had matted, dirty fur and eye problems, and a cockatoo was missing all the feathers from its chest, police said. There was a large amount of food left in a communal feeder for the animals and the water was filthy.

One dog, a bull terrier, appeared in very poor health, with hair missing from his chest and belly, pus coming from his eye and red skin on his face. The affidavit said, "this dog matches the description of a dog that had skin issues in 2006 that Allen was not treating properly."

The animals were seized and brought to animal control. Lab tests were still pending on some of the animals from the home, so whether some or all will be euthanized was not known.

Police then went to search Chateau Pampered Purr at 611 Tudor Road. Allen's license to operate the nonprofit Chateau Pampered Purr expired in December 2007 but its operation continues, according to police.

   (Photo courtesy of Mike Nederbrock/KTUU-DT.  Allen's Chateau Pampered Purr cat rescue)

"In contacts with Allen, she has told officer that she takes in strays," police Lt. Dave Parker said. "Apparently she operates a cat adoption clinic at Petco."

At the chateau, police found 50 or more cats and 2 lizards in filthy conditions and with similar health problems. The animals remain there because animal control, besieged by the influx of animals from the first round, had nowhere to put them, animal control spokeswoman Brooke Taylor said.

"We don't have facilities here for that many animals, so we're trying to decide what's the best course of action," Taylor said. "There's an issue with, if there is sickness, we can't have these animals in a location where our healthy population here at the center could be exposed to something, so that's a concern of ours. (Also) just basic space."  In the meantime, Conn hopes Allen is feeding them.

Since her arrest, Deborah Allen has been freed on $750 bail. Allen did not return messages seeking comment. There was no answer at her home at the end of a dead-end, wooded street. Several cat-themed pieces of art decorated the cluttered porch. The smell of animal urine was noticeable.

Each misdemeanor animal-cruelty count carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. Allen, if convicted, could also be ordered to reimburse animal control for the cost of housing, feeding and veterinary care.

Conn has dealt with a similar situation before.

Allen's sister, Krystal Renea Allen, 55, was convicted in an animal hoarding case from 2004 in which police found 165 cats covered in filth, many of them sickly. In that house there were also at least a dozen exotic birds in cages and a couple of dogs, and, out in the yard, chickens.

Krystal Allen told officers she meant well by taking in strays but it had gotten out of hand. She later pleaded no contest to two animal cruelty charges, was sentenced to 30 days in jail and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.

Update 10/14/09:  Shock and disappointment is what animal advocates and others felt when they heard about the animal cruelty charges against a woman they considered an animal advocate.

Concerns came out from those who worked closely with Allen and her cause.  News of what police found in Allen's Sand Lake home shocked animal advocates.

       (Photo's courtesy of Animal Care and Control)  "That the conditions were unsanitary for the animals and the body condition of each animal was a definite sign of what kind of conditions they were living in," said Brooke Taylor from Animal Care and Control.

Some reactions are coming from those who actually worked with Allen and are now dealing with the fallout from a woman known for rescuing so many animals.  "Really very shocked. I just cannot believe that an organization that's built on saving animals actually stands accused of abusing animals," said Randy Moody, the manager of PETCO.  "She's been in my store adopting cats on and off since 2006," Moody said.

He is still stunned that Allen, who spent many weekends at PETCO trying to find homes for so many cats, is under investigation for mistreating the very animals she was trying to save.   "There has been no complaints that I'm aware of. Really I haven't heard any kind of complaints as far as animals being sick," Moody said of the cats Allen did find homes for.

However, that was before the news about the charges.  "We had a couple of concerned customers that have asked. They adopted pets from Deborah and were concerned there might be some issues with them, and really what we are directing them to do ... is to consult a veterinarian to make sure that everything is okay," Moody said.

PETCO won't have to worry about that issue with Allen any further.  "Deborah Allen is now banned from the store. She's not going to be allowed to come back and adopt animals out of our store for the obvious reasons, just can't have that kind of person adopting animals out, not only in our store but anywhere in our community. But she is no longer welcome in PETCO right now until this issue is completely resolved," Moody said.

The city is not yet releasing the tests done on the animals to see if they are healthy enough for adoption. Prosecutors say they are being cautious about what they are releasing in order to avoid jeopardizing the case.

Update 10/15/09:  City officials aren't discussing what will become of more than 80 animals found at a shelter and home owned by a woman accused of animal cruelty, saying they don't want to compromise the case.

Anchorage Police and Animal Care and Control officials referred all questions to the city attorney's office. Deputy Municipal Attorney Rhonda Westover said she would not reveal the status of the cats.

"The cats were seized pursuant to a search warrant and that makes them evidence in the case," Westover said. "We appreciate that citizens of Anchorage are interested in the status of the animals and they're being very generous by offering to adopt them; however, until we complete the investigation and go through the court process we really can't talk about anything specific without risking prejudice and the opportunity for a fair trial."

The woman accused of hoarding cats, Deborah Ann Allen, disputes the allegations. She said in a phone call that her attorney told her not to comment on the specifics of the case but that the conditions described in a police affidavit did not accurately portray the facts.  "I'm telling you that it's not the way it appears. There's a lot of history here, an awful lot of history here," Allen said.

Westover said prosecutors plan to ask a judge how to proceed with all of the animals.

Allen is charged with 33 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty.

Update 10/23/09:  Allen plead not guilty after being charged with 33 counts of animal cruelty.

  (Photo courtesy of KTUU-DT)  Thirty-two animals have been removed from Allen's Sand Lake home.

The defense says about 50 more cats are still in her possession at her Chateau Pampered Purr shelter.

Allen did not appear at her arraignment. She's out on bail under the condition that she will not take in any more animals.

The pre-trial conference is set for Nov. 9th.

Reference:

The Anchorage Daily News

KTUU-DT