VERO BEACH, Fla. — A man has been arrested after 26 dogs and puppies were found piled into a small wire crate and abandoned on a dirt road.
The dogs were found April 9 in the 4300 block of 25th Street Southwest in Vero Beach.
"They were lethargic, dehydrated and terrified when they were found," the Humane Society of Vero Beach and Indian River County wrote on Facebook, adding that the dogs were found "without food, water or shelter."
David Yates, 64, faces 26 charges of animal cruelty and more serious charges could be on the way as two of the puppies have died. Deputies said the current misdemeanor charges could be upgraded to felonies for those two counts.
The Indian River County Sheriff's Office said someone recognized the crate shown in the Humane Society's Facebook post about the incident and alerted authorities.