Town police said Jacqueline Bates, 48, operated an illegal animal shelter inside her three-bedroom ranch home, jeopardizing the lives of four dozen pets and forcing her 12-year-old daughter to sleep in the stench of fresh feces.
Acting on a noise complaint from a neighbor, cops raided the single family dwelling at 236 Quaker St. on the afternoon of Sept 28.
Inside they found a dank dungeon of filth: Floors coated with dung, cages stacked to the ceiling, and emaciated cats and dogs raw from an army of fleas.
"It was a house of horrors: It wasn't fit for people, animals, anybody. It was just horrible," said town Animal Control Officer Mary Meyer. "Her house was like a Third World country."
Four dozens pets � including rabbits, chickens and roosters � were rescued by local officials, Meyer said.
Bates, a single mother, could not be reached for comment yesterday. She was not home when a reporter and photographer went to her house.
Police said they charged the women with one count of endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, and could charge her with additional crimes, including code violations and cruelty to animals.
She is due in Town Court to face the child welfare charge on Oct. 11.
Most of Bates' cats and dogs were recovering yesterday at the town's overcrowded animal shelter on Gidney Avenue. Seven remained in intensive care at Flannery Animal Hospital in New Windsor, ailing from infections, bugs and respiratory problems.
Only one animal � a guinea pig � was dead on arrival, animal control officials said.
It remains unclear what will happen to the seized animals once their health improves. Some will likely be put up for adoption, but not all.
"We just got 18 adult cats that nobody wants," Meyer said. "What are we going to do with them?"
Authorities are at a loss to explain how Bates could have hoarded a county fair's worth of four-legged creatures into a tiny single family.
From the road, the house doesn't look like much. Thick vines climb the front picture window, and an abandoned dog kennel sits empty in the backyard. Neighbors in the rural community, where fields of sheep and horses graze, said nothing seemed amiss next door.
"They kept to themselves," said one neighbor, who would not give her name. "It didn't stink."
But those who stepped through the Bates' front door last week tell a different story.
"Quite frankly, it was deplorable," said Deputy police Chief John Mahoney. "There were feces throughout the house, little or no access to the kitchen, and the floors were literally covered with animal waste."
Building inspectors ordered the power disconnected immediately after entering the home, to reduce the risks of fire, he said.
"It's ironic that this lady, who had a heart for animals, would put her daughter in that situation," Mahoney said. "I'm sorry for the little girl."
To adopt an pet, or donate to the Town of Newburgh animal shelter, call 561-3344.
The saved:
* 1 Rottweiler
* 3 Pomeranians
* 1 pug
* 1 miniature pinscher
* 10 dachshunds
* 18 cats
* 1 guinea pig
* 2 finches
* 3 rabbits
* 5 chickens
* 2 roosters
* 2 Siamese fighting fish Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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