Uninhabitable: Police say 3 children live in home where 331 chinchillas found; parents could face charges

WAUKESHA (WITI) -- Waukesha police say two parents are expected to face child neglect charges after 331 chinchillas were pulled from a home on Melody Lane near Laura Lane on Sunday, March 29th.

Police were called out to the home shortly after 9:30 a.m. by an individual requesting a welfare check on a female at the home -- based on comments she made on social media. While that information was unfounded, police were quickly redirected to deal with the "obvious" living condition issues.

Three children live in the home -- ages seven, nine and 17.

Police say conditions in the home were "deplorable" -- calling the home a "hoarder home" based on pathways through the home to negotiate through stacks of clothing and various belongings.

331 living chinchillas were pulled from the home. They were housed in the living room and dining room of the home -- which is a rental property, police say.

25 dead chinchillas were found in the garage and a chest freezer in the basement.



Police say the smell of ammonia was so overwhelming that officers contacted the Waukesha Fire Department. Fire officials tested the environment with specialized equipment and deemed the air unsafe to breathe, and the residence uninhabitable.

HAWS, the Humane Animal Welfare Society in Waukesha was called out to take custody of the chinchillas.

"My thoughts were -- this is a lot! We started pulling cages from everywhere in the building that we could come up with -- adding carriers from everywhere in the building we could find," a HAWS official said.

Kiryn Ogle's first day with HAWS was spent cleaning chinchilla cages.

"While they are playing and bathing we just remove everything and wipe it all down and make sure it`s nice and clean," Ogle said.

Police say the owners are refusing to surrender custody of the chinchillas. Depending on what Waukesha police recommend, HAWS could end up with all 331 chinchillas.

"We just like to get a little jump on it in case they are all surrendered to us. It would happen all at once. We`d need to get them sent to good places right away," HAWS Board President Cindy Pechanach said.

Tuesdee Luce is a long-time volunteer with HAWS, and she has two chinchillas of her own. She says she's happy to help with this situation.

"They are in good shape, even though they didn't have such good housing where they were," Luce said.

The Department of Health and Human Services was also called out to the scene Sunday. Police say child neglect charges are expected to be filed against each of the parents in this case.

Police are also exploring charges related to the poor treatment of the chinchillas.

HAWS has issued this statement as it relates to the care of the chinchillas: