Dozens Of Dead Animals Found At Pet Store With No Electricity

Police in Illinois made a gruesome discovery at a local pet store over the weekend. Authorities in Macomb responded to a complaint Saturday about the smell emanating from the closed down Macomb Pet Land store, which led to the discovery of dozens of animals, both dead and alive, still in the building.

Police were “overwhelmed” by the stench coming from the building, according to KWQC. Macomb Pet Land had closed down operations weeks before and the company supplying electricity to the building shut off the power while around 100 small animals were still inside.

Store owner Jessica Spangler was arrested and charged with aggravated cruelty to animals. According to Spangler, she had entrusted care for the animals to someone else and did not know about the conditions they faced at the store. She was released on bond.

In total, 56 animals were discovered alive and 41 were confirmed dead by police.

Signs on the Macomb Pet Land store claimed it was closed for maintenance and the animals were cared for daily, according to Tri-States Public Radio. The power was cut on May 14, meaning the animals had been without electricity for around two weeks before officers found them roaming around outside their cages.

All of the deceased animals were of the small pet variety, meaning no dogs were found in the store. Only a few cats were present, but none were dead.

The list of dead animals consisted of 10 snakes, eight rabbits, five hamsters, three hermit crabs, three tarantulas and two degus. Also found dead was a lizard, gerbil, rat, guinea pig and a cockatiel. There was also an unconfirmed number of dead fish.

There had previously been a complaint about Macomb Pet Land in February, but police found at the time that there were no obvious problems with the way the animals were being cared for. The living animals were all given treatment after police found them and placed in foster homes.