LAKELAND – Animal control officers are investigating several dead animals found at the Noah’s Ark Exotic Pet Store on U.S. Highway 92 East in Lakeland.
On Monday, they discovered them inside the store, with the electricity off. Lakeland Electric said the power had been off for five days because of an unpaid bill. The temperature inside the store was found to be over 100 degrees.
There were eight dead animals inside including birds, a rabbit and lizard.
More than 50 other animals were alive and were taken into custody. Those include a turtle, a duck, two gecko lizards, 10 hamsters, and numerous birds including chickens, pigeons, and a quail, according to deputies.
The pet store owner, Diana Cabrera, told deputies Tuesday that she had been out of town for a week and left a caretaker in charge of the pets.
Detectives are continuing their investigation and working to determine who was left as caretaker of the store while Cabrera was away. The State Attorney’s Office is also involved and any possible charges are still pending.