Tehachapi News

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Kern County Animal Control officers found the corpses of 14 cats and dogs wrapped in plastic and tucked into a freezer on property in Tehachapi July 16.
They rescued 15 living dogs and 37 cats.
The officers arrested Anita Gilbert, 59, on 41 felony counts of animal cruelty.
Animal Control officers, backed up by Kern County sheriff's deputies, raided Gilbert's Tehachapi home, where they found animals, living and dead, in nightmarish conditions.
“Deplorable,” said Senior Animal Control Officer Steve Eirich. “I struggle to describe it. I've been here 17 years and this is one of the top five (worst).”
Eirich said Gilbert lived in a 100- by 60-foot metal outbuilding with the animals.
The dogs were living in kennels constructed inside the building and most of the cats were confined in two offices and a bathroom.
Used dog and cat food cans were strewn around the area, piled two feet deep in some areas amid a hodge-podge of trash that Eirich could only call “debris.”
Animal feces covered large patches of the floor, he said.
“The situation was so bad that our animal control officers could only go in for a few minutes,” said Resource Management Agency Director David Price III. “Station 16 (of the) Kern County Fire Department responded with industrial fans and respirators.”
Eirich said his animal control officers could barely breathe because of the stench inside the building and had to fight the urge to vomit if they didn't dart out to take in fresh air.
Kern County code enforcement officers declared the large metal kennel building and a home on the property unfit for human habitation, Price said.
“It was obviously not suitable for the animals either,” he said.
Eirich said the home’s problems were not related to the animals and it appears Gilbert and the animals lived only in the metal outbuilding.
Animals rescued alive were moved to the county animal shelter in Mojave or are in the care of veterinarians, Price said.
“Some animals seemed to be in pretty good condition,” he said.
But some of the cats tested positive for feline leukemia, which is highly contagious.
Those animals with leukemia will be quarantined but could die from their illness, and their condition is a concern for other animals in shelter populations, Price said.
Eirich said a report made Monday by a member of the public triggered the investigation of Gilbert.
Animal control officers tried to investigate the problem Tuesday but were refused access to the property.
They came back with a search warrant and sheriff's deputies on Wednesday, Eirich said, after hearing Gilbert tried to clean up the property overnight.
It appears she was only able to clean out the dog kennels, he said. The rest of the structure remained in horrible condition.
“It was like dropping a penny in the dollar slot,” Eirich said.
Kern County Sheriff's Department Senior Deputy Michael Whorf said Gilbert was arrested by animal control and booked into the sheriff's central receiving facility in Bakersfield.
Her bail was set at $205,000.
A spokesperson for Save Tehachapi’s Orphaned Pets (STOP) was saddened by the report of animal abuse. “We tend to think that animal abuse, puppy mills and animal hoarding are other community's problems,” said Chelly Kitzmiller, “but this incident proves that these things are happening right here in our own community, literally under our noses.” 
 Kitzmiller said STOP has offered the county help. “Kern County has just begun a foster care program and we look forward to being part of that program. We have several foster homes that could take some of these dogs but are in need of more. Fostering a homeless pet is a satisfying and rewarding endeavor. If anyone would like to help us help these poor Tehachapi animals, please call our STOP line at 823-4100 and leave your name and number.”