Florida woman arrested after rescuing nearly 20 starving animals from her home, officials say

MELBOURNE, Florida. – Nearly 20 animals found starving and living in filth were seized from a Melbourne home this week. The homeowner was taken into custody on multiple animal cruelty charges.

Officers seized a golden retriever named Sunny, two birds and more than a dozen cats from a home on Coventry Street in Melbourne.

According to the Brevard County Sheriff's Office, all of the animals were starving and living in terrible conditions. The houses were littered with urine, feces and garbage.

If officials had not received an anonymous tip about animals in danger, several animals could have died within a few weeks, according to court documents.

On Monday, Sheriff Wayne Ivey released disturbing images of one of the animals, including a golden retriever believed to be about 10 years old.

Deputies said Sunny was starving and losing her hair.

Sheriff Ivey described the dog as “hairless and with flea nests the size of golf balls.”

Brevard Sheriff's officers took photos as they entered the home after a person called and complained that animals were in danger.

According to court documents, they could smell urine from outside when they visited the homeowner several times in early August and tried to make contact with him.

“If it were up to me, she would be treated the same as these animals,” the sheriff said.

Patricia Merrill, 75, was arrested by Sheriff Ivey on Monday and taken to the Brevard County Jail.

She is accused of 18 cases of animal cruelty and illegal imprisonment.

“I don't feel sorry for her,” said the sheriff. “I don't care. She needs to go to jail. She let 18 animals suffer at her hands.”

On Tuesday she had to answer the charges in court.

“Miss Merrill, you qualify for public defender status. I will appoint a public defender,” the judge said during the hearing.

During the hearing, which lasted only a few minutes, the suspect did not say much to the judge.

“Am I done?” the suspect asked. “Yes, you're done,” the judge said after keeping her bail at $63,000.

In court documents, Merrill told investigators she had not had enough time to clean her home and there had been no running water on the property for two years.

She admitted to MPs that she should have fed her animals more often.

“These people are unfortunate individuals who cannot do what they are supposed to do, who cannot fulfill their responsibilities,” the sheriff said.

Neighbors in the area say law enforcement officers have visited the property several times.

FOX 35 saw overgrown grass in the backyard, but neighbors say they never knew how bad it really was inside.

“What they found were deplorable conditions,” the sheriff concluded.

Her next court date is September 17. FOX 35 has also contacted Melbourne Police regarding concerns about building code compliance on the property. We are currently awaiting a response on how many cases they are investigating.