Woman charged after puppies found in dumpsters

BLAKELY, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A woman was charged after police found puppies in dumpsters at Timber Falls after receiving a report from a neighbor.

Catherine Yvette Small, 40, was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals on July 16.

Blakely Borough Police received a call regarding a puppy found in a dumpster at Timber Falls.

According to the police, the caller handed the officer a small grey puppy wrapped in a towel that was still alive.

The caller told police he was throwing garbage away when he heard a dog crying. He stated to police that he opened a trash bag that had a puppy inside of it.

The officers on the scene secured the puppy and then checked the dumpsters to see if there were any more puppies inside.

Officers allegedly found two more puppies alive and another deceased. The deceased puppy was wrapped in a black garbage bag. The garbage bag also contained a piece of mail with an address to Small’s apartment, according to court documents.

Before the puppies were transported to the Veterinary Medical Center, the officers stated they double-checked the dumpster to be sure there weren’t any more dogs inside.

Officers say they showed up to Small’s apartment, who had several dogs barking and officers observed a large male Cane Corso with the same color fur as the puppies.

The officer asked Small if one of her dogs recently had puppies, and Small asked why. The officer had advised Small that puppies were found in a dumpster with mail belonging to her residence and were still alive. Small allegedly stated that she believed the puppies were dead.

According to the affidavit, Small admitted to police that she told her 15-year-old son to place the dogs in trash bags and put them in the dumpsters. Small also stated that she believed the mother was too young to have them and wasn’t taking care of them and they wouldn’t eat the baby milk that she she tried to feed to the puppies.

Small’s preliminary hearing is July 30 at 10:00 a.m. with Magisterial District Judge Sean P. McGraw.

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