What started as a call about puppies left in a parking lot turned into a grim rescue in Kissimmee on Monday, after police say they pulled 24 Chihuahua puppies from a bug-infested car where the animals were thin, missing patches of fur, and caked in feces and urine. Officers arrested two women at the scene after finding the dogs stuffed into small crates and other containers inside the vehicle. The puppies were taken into protective custody while investigators began preparing criminal charges.
Where officers found the dogs
Officers were dispatched around 1:20 p.m. Monday, after a caller reported that puppies had been left unattended on North John Young Parkway. According to the charging document, police arrived to find 24 puppies inside the car, including two small crates that each held three pups. The Osceola County arrest report lists both women as booked on aggravated animal cruelty and related neglect offenses, with the bookings processed on Monday for the public record.
As reported by FOX 35 Orlando, the suspects were identified as 42-year-olds Dawn Biggs and Dana Hutchinson. The affidavit says Hutchinson told officers she had kept the dogs in the vehicle "for several weeks." It also describes bugs crawling throughout the car and notes that the puppies were missing hair and appeared underweight.
Legal implications
Florida law defines animal cruelty and aggravated animal cruelty in Florida Senate records. Aggravated cruelty is a third-degree felony that can carry up to five years in prison and fines up to $10,000, and courts may bar those convicted from owning or caring for animals. A conviction on qualifying aggravated-cruelty counts could also land a person on the state’s public animal-abuser registry, maintained by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which launched earlier this year.
The charging affidavit filed in Osceola County on Monday is the underlying public record for the arrests. Local prosecutors will now review the case file and decide whether to formally file charges and schedule court dates. Updates will be added as more information becomes available about the puppies’ condition and the legal proceedings.
