Animal Control officers found 22 dogs at a home in Orange County Tuesday, most of which were sick and needed medical attention.
The ill pups were taken from the home of Auralia Arechiga, 47, in the 2000 block of W. 14th Street in Santa Ana.
Most of the dogs ranged in age between 5 and 10, with at least five puppies in the group, said Sondra Berg, an animal services supervisor for the Santa Ana Police Department.
The puppies may have been bought in Riverside to be sold at a later time, she added.
Many of the dogs were believed to have scabies, a highly contagious skin disease that could be transmitted to humans.
"Most people probably wouldn't even know, they would just think, 'Oh, it's got a little skin problem,' and wouldn't understand that it could actually be contagious to them and their families," Berg said.
Some of the dogs’ had eye infections, ears filled with mites and many had gum disease. Animal Control officials say most of the poodles and pugs were kept together, outdoors and uncared for, possibly for years.
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Almost all of them were at various stages of being sick, Berg said.
Three healthy dogs were allowed to stay with Arechiga, who now faces animal cruelty charges.
Arechiga released the remaining dogs to officials and they were taken to OC Animal Care for evaluation.
If the canines could be nursed back to health, it would take several months, said Kati Ingram with OC Animal Care.
Officials said neighbors complained of the smell coming from the home.
Tuesday's run in with animal officials was not the first for Arechiga. Animal Control officers visited her seven years ago for similar reasons.
It was unclear if any of the pups would be put up for adoption.
Santa Ana limits residents to three dogs per household
