Florida Man Charged With Animal Cruelty After Dead Dog, Neglected Animals Found On Ranch

A Florida man is facing animal cruelty charges after a dog was found starved to death in a cage, and six other animals were rescued from “terrible conditions,” authorities said.

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said a tipster contacted the media outlet WPEC to report concerns about animal cruelty at a ranch on the 16000 block of Conners Highway, along the northeastern shore of Lake Okeechobee. WPEC then relayed those concerns to the sheriff’s office.

Detectives and Animal Services officers visited the property and “what they found was disturbing,” the sheriff’s office said.

A dead dog was found locked in a cage “showing clear signs that it had starved to death.” A second dog was found “severely emaciated, unable to lift its head, and near death.” A female dog with three puppies and a cat also showed “signs of neglect.”

The owner of the animals, identified as 34-year-old Jose Arreaga, told investigators that he resides in Okeechobee, and relied on someone else to care for the animals at the ranch. According to the sheriff’s office, “no one did.”

The six surviving animals, including the dog in critical condition, were seized and transferred to the Humane Society of Treasure Coast for treatment.

Arreaga was arrested and charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty.

“Thank you to the anonymous tipster who contacted the media,” the sheriff’s office said. “Thank you to the media outlet that contacted the Sheriff’s Office. Sadly, one dog succumbed to this cruel neglect, but six other animals were saved because someone saw something and said something.”