BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) – Squalor, garbage and a lingering foul odor are all that is left at the East Bakersfield home where 22-year-old Annie Schreiber allegedly operated an unlicensed private animal boarding and training business, according to Bakersfield Police.
“Animals were always in the backyard and barking was coming from the inside the house all the time,” Lisa Lopez, a neighbor, said.
That was a common sight for Lopez.
Lopez believes Schreiber had only been renting the home next door for about 6 months.
“I would see her, and I knew something was wrong, but I just couldn’t pinpoint it,” Lopez said. “About two months ago that’s when it got concerning because the smell was overwhelming, and we couldn’t figure out what was going on.”
That intense odor pushed Lopez to call authorities to figure out what was causing such a stench. It was that phone call that led to the discovery of not one but three houses of horror and animal abuse.
A phone call came just in time to save some animals but a little late for 11 others. Police and animal control officers found 29 dogs suffering from neglect, three cats and 11 dead dogs all across three residences linked to Schreiber.
“The neighbors here had owned a lot of animals,” Lopez said. “We thought one had died and they had put it in the trash can.”
Police said the first home, where 10 dead dogs were found, is at Bernard Street.
Another home was at Centennial Court where neighbors say Schreiber lived with her grandfather.
The third was at Oakencroft Drive, neighbors say an uncle of Schreiber possibly rented that home to her.
“She’s got to answer for what she did now,” Lopez said.
In addition to the felony animal abuse counts, she faces 10 misdemeanor counts of abandoning a dog or cat, 20 misdemeanor animal cruelty counts and 26 counts of operating a kennel without a permit, according to her booking information.
Several of the animals were microchipped and most of the owners have been located, police said.
According to authorities the surviving animals are now receiving proper care. Meantime, Schreiber declined a request for an interview, she is held on $250,000 bail and is due in court Tuesday.