Hartwell Couple Facing Felony Animal Cruelty Charges After Dead Dogs Found in Their Home

A Hartwell couple is facing charges of felony animal cruelty for confining in crates and allegedly starving three dogs, two of which were found dead, and with alleged cruelty to cats.

On December 29th, police were called to the home of Steve and Angie Whitfield at 206 Cunningham St. in Hartwell where the dogs were found locked inside metal crates in a back bedroom, according to Hartwell Assistant Police Chief Stan Sayer.

Sayer said the couple had a total of eight animals, two dead, others barely alive,  living in filthy conditions.

“They had in their care and custody eight animals, three cats, and three dogs when we got there. There were two dogs that were deceased, which makes up the total of eight but six were still alive,” Sayer said.

According to Sayer, two of the dogs were found dead inside two of the crates and a third dog was found barely alive.

“Two dogs that were kept inside a crate in a pile of feces and urine for a long time. I don’t know that it was for two years but I know it was a long time. Both of those we believe succumbed to starvation and dehydration. And the third dog, I mean, he is pitiful. He can’t stand up because he was kept inside a crate for so long. It was horrific,” Sayer said.

Sayer said the surviving dog has gone blind, and the vet believes it is from malnutrition so there is hope he may recover some of his sight as he gets his health back.

The dog is being fed several times a day intravenously but it’s too soon to tell if he will make a full recovery.

In addition to the dogs, officers found two cats locked in a bathroom that were also very sick due to the conditions in the bathroom.

“There were two cats that were confined in a bathroom, and the bathroom was covered in feces and urine,” Sayer said Thursday. “It was so bad that it caused ulcers to form on one of the cat’s eyes. In fact, the cat had surgery yesterday to remove the ulcers.”

But the cat is not out of the woods yet because of multiple other health issues related to being confined to the bathroom for a long period of time.

Both the surviving dog and the cats are being treated at an area animal hospital.

Two other small dogs owned by the Whitfields were also confiscated and are receiving needed medical care.

Sayer said he has taken eight felony animal cruelty warrants against Steve Whitfield.

He said warrants are also being taken against Whitfield’s wife Angie because she allegedly knew about the neglect and cruelty and did nothing about it.

A person convicted of aggravated cruelty to animals in Georgia is guilty of a felony, which carries a prison term between one and five years, and a fine of no more than $15,000, or both.

Sayer said Whitfield has given no reason for allegedly starving the dogs. He said the investigation is continuing and he expects to make more arrests.

Meantime, Sayer said the filth inside the home on Cunningham Drive has made it unliveable and Whitfield has been told not to return to it.

WLHR News will continue to follow this story and bring you more information as it becomes available.