‘House of horrors’: DeLand woman arrested on 28 charges in animal cruelty case

DeLAND, Fla. — A DeLand woman is facing more than two dozen animal cruelty charges after deputies say they found more than two dozen abused pets in her home.

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The home is on Beresford Avenue near Amelia Avenue.

The smell from outside the home prompted a pool cleaner to call 911.

Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood described it as a “house of horrors,” saying it was so bad that deputies were prepared to find a body inside of the home.

Instead, they found more than twenty animals, all different species and if they weren’t dead, they were close to dying.

Read: Deputies: Basset hound, 2 cats, 3 geckos & 2 birds found dead in DeLand home

“There are dogs, there are cats, birds, tortoises, snakes, lizards, geckos all in there,” Chitwood said. “There’s at least two dead cats.”

Ashley Boucher, 37, was taken into custody after investigators said she admitted to not properly caring for her pets because she spent most of her time in Casselberry, where she works.

Boucher was in court Tuesday and is being held on a $54,000 bond.

One of the conditions of that bond is that she will never be allowed to own an animal again.

Read: Sheriff: More than 300 neglected animals removed from Central Florida home

Chitwood said some of his deputies are already looking to adopt the dogs that survived.

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Deputies: Basset hound, 2 cats, 3 geckos & 2 birds found dead in DeLand home A Volusia County woman was arrested on more than two dozen charges of animal cruelty. (WFTV)

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