Connecticut woman accused of animal cruelty: 26 cats, 6 dogs, 2 rats found

A Connecticut woman is accused of animal cruelty after multiple animals were found in a Hamden home, authorities said.

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Donna Scirocco, 59, of Hamden, was arrested Tuesday and charged with six counts of cruelty to animals, the Connecticut Post reported. She is being held on $5,000 bail, WFSB reported.

Capt. Ronald Smith told the Post in an email that Scirocco’s arrest was connected to an October 26 search of a home, where officers allegedly found two rats, 26 cats, six dogs, two caged squirrels and a blind owl.

“Upon entering the residence, animal control officers were greeted by two large rats,” the Hampden Police Department wrote in an Oct. 26 news release. “Quinnipiac Valley Health District officials were on scene and deemed the residence ‘uninhabitable.’”

Investigators said they also found three dead animals, including two cats and a woodchuck, WFSB reported.

One of the dogs allegedly was “clinging to life,” Smith said in the email, and “Taxidermic animals were (also) found inside of the residence.”

Scirocco is scheduled to appear in Superior Court on Feb. 5 in Meriden, WFSB reported.

Cox Media Group