By Breitbart News Network | Created at 2026-08-11 18:03:28 | Updated at 2026-08-11 20:20:54
5 hours ago
A woman in Palm City, Florida, is accused of keeping 36 feces-covered Border Collies in a deteriorating home, the second alleged animal hoarding case Martin County officials have been investigating in recent weeks.
The suspect was identified as 62-year-old Paige O’Donnell who was arrested and is facing charges of felony animal cruelty and improper confinement, CBS 12 reported Monday.
Deputies with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office were serving a search warrant at the home on Alligator Street as part of an investigation into the homeowner and concerns about the animals.
“The animals themselves, the dogs, which are supposed to be Border Collies, beautiful dogs, are covered in feces. They’re supposed to be white and black dogs, and they’re solid black from the feces,” Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek told reporters.
Photos showed the rescuers carrying the dogs, whose coats were beyond filthy, out of the home to safety:
Crews had to wear Tyvek protective gear when they entered the home because it was so full of feces and urine-soaked materials. The temperature was also extremely high and it was unclear whether the home had air conditioning.
More video footage caught the moments crews brought the dogs out of the house. Some of animals appeared to be timid:
Budensiek said of the residence, “It’s just stacked with garbage. It’s disgusting in there. There’s feces over every square inch of the house.”
According to CBS 12, O’Donnell used to be a dog breeder.
A reporter with the outlet said authorities believed O’Donnell had trapped the dogs inside the home for at least four years, and when neighbors became concerned about the animals they contacted law enforcement:
Budensiek said the dogs were loose in the home but it was “so deteriorated that about a foot and a half of drywall is gone.”
“The furniture is destroyed and the animals are in deplorable condition. The food bowls, the water bowls in there are covered in feces,” he added, noting the suspect will face at least 40 charges in the case.
The news came after a similar case in Martin County where Budensiek said an elderly mail carrier was accused of trapping 100 cats and dogs on her route and hoarding them inside her house, per Breitbart News.
In the case of the Border Collies, Budensiek said authorities spent days surveilling O’Donnell’s home and tried to negotiate with her about letting them view the animals. She finally agreed to surrender one dog.
“She knew what she was doing and there’s multiple people that tried to help her,” he explained. Now, the dogs are in the care of the Martin County Humane Society, per WPTV.
