Aguanga Dog Slaying

After seeing the news stories being edited to omit the fact that dogs were killed on this property I finally was able to find the original story. The question still remains....Why did these animals need to be killed agian? And who killed them? Also Euthanasia means "a good death" I would hardly called being shot to death a good/peaceful death. I am not saying by any means that the seizure was right or wrong I am simply talking about dogs that were killed and not placed up for adoption...animal control has a code that says if animals are sick or injured they MUST be vetted and offered for adoption. It is thier code...so I guess only they can manipulate it to suit thier needs as they see fit.

08:11 AM PST on Monday, January 26, 2009

By TAMMY J. McCOY
The Press-Enterprise

More than 100 feral cats and dogs living in putrid conditions had to be euthanized after authorities found them with the remains of 200 other animals placed in trash bags on the grounds of a rural Temecula residence.

While nine puppies and one dog were rescued from the Liefer Road residence, authorities had to remove the bodies of 318 cats and dogs from the property, said Willa Bagwell, executive director of Animal Friends of the Valleys. The organization provides animal control services for Temecula.

"They were just wild animals. They had never been touched," she said. "I've never seen this many animals and animals this feral."

Temecula police Friday arrested Elisao Gilbert Jimenez, 66, on suspicion of animal cruelty after being called to the residence about a vicious dog, said Riverside County sheriff's spokesman Javier Rodriguez.

Jimenez lived alone, deputies said. He let the animals breed and roam freely without taking any of them to a local shelter because he feared they would be destroyed, Bagwell said.

"He didn't know what to do with them," she said.

Jimenez put animals that had died into bags instead of burying them because he didn't own the property, Bagwell said.

"He was very calm," Bagwell said of Jimenez. "He was like, OK, it's over."

The residence is located in northern Temecula off a dirt road with a sprawling, grassy front yard surrounded by wire fences. A tall gate with a thick chain and bulky lock secured the grounds.

A red barn and a large mobile home are atop a slope about a quarter-mile from the dirt road.

When animal control officers initially arrived, packs of dogs attacked each other, and the officers saw other horrifying acts, Bagwell said Saturday.

About 70 dogs circled officers and threatened to attack, leaving authorities with no choice but to euthanize the animals, she said.

The mobile home had been turned over to the animals, Bagwell said. Officers even discovered animals hiding in cupboards.

"The smell, I can't tell you how bad the smell was," Bagwell said.

Outside, there were more than 100 plastic trash bags filled with animal feces and animal corpses, Bagwell said.

Neighbors were shocked by the discovery. Harold Newstrom, 82, who lives about a quarter mile down the road from the property on the 39000 block of Liefer Road said he drives past the Jimenez residence every day and never heard, smelled or saw anything.

"Where did they keep them all?" Newstrom asked. "I've never seen a dog there. I've never seen any animal there."

Margaret Sturgeon, 82, said she sometimes talked briefly to Jimenez at his front gate or at the postal boxes where they both picked up mail. He seemed normal, she said.

"He said he had three dogs," said Sturgeon. "He never acted as if anything was wrong."

Last summer, Jimenez put up notices on telephone poles about a lost cat that he said later returned home, she said.

In addition to Bagwell's team and police, city officials showed up in what turned out to be a 12-hour endeavor, she said.

Bagwell said her staff planned to spend time Saturday bathing and caring for the 10 dogs they were able to rescue.

The nine puppies are about 8 weeks old and the dog has a sweet disposition, she added.

Staff writer David Olson contributed to this report.

Reach Tammy J. McCoy at 951-375-3729 or tmccoy@PE.com