Nearly 300 animals rescued from Miller Place home, DA says

Suffolk County investigators seized nearly 300 neglected rabbits, birds, cats, tortoises and snakes Tuesday from a Miller Place home infested with vermin and covered in feces, authorities said.

The Suffolk district attorney’s Biological, Environmental and Animal Safety Team, or BEAST, along with the Town of Brookhaven and ASPCA units from around the country rescued the animals hoarded in the home on Radio Place in what was called "Operation Open Cage."

Animal control officers and district attorney investigators found 118 rabbits in the home, 150 birds, 15 cats, seven tortoises and three snakes. The home was infested with mice and roaches, officials said.

“A woman got very overwhelmed with animals under her care,” BEAST Supervising Attorney Jed Painter said. “The conditions of any household with 300 animals is going to have toxic ammonia levels.”

He said the crowded, dirty conditions caused sores, hair loss and other problems for the animals, which had to be evacuated and cared for. Most of the animals were expected to recover and were being taken to animal sanctuaries or shelters.

Prosecutors charged the owner of the home, Karin M. Keyes, 51, with multiple counts of cruel confinement of animals under the agriculture and markets law, according to Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney’s office.

Keyes had not appeared in court as of Tuesday evening and her defense attorney’s information was not available. Keyes, who lists herself as a clinical social worker, could not be reached for comment.

Suffolk County prosecutors began investigating the home Oct. 1 after they were contacted by Brookhaven Animal Control, authorities said. Firefighters were first called to the house after caregivers tripped a fire alarm while Keyes was away, Painter said.

“The conditions were so deplorable that a Town of Brookhaven building inspector condemned the property as uninhabitable,” district attorney officials said in a statement.

The woman was living off site, but was allowed to return to feed the animals.

The operation required the help of numerous animal rescue groups as well as law enforcement and town authorities that will condemn the house, prosecutors said.

“Through our partnerships with local government and rescue groups, we can work cohesively to ensure that these types of inhumane abuse of animals are addressed and those who participate in them are held accountable,” Tierney said in a statement.

ASPCA workers from around the country responded to assess and care for the animals.

“When ASPCA responders arrived on the property, it was clear immediate intervention was necessary to remove hundreds of neglected animals from the inhumane and brutal conditions they were subjected to and provide them with expert care,” said Matt Bershadker, ASPCA president and CEO. “

The animals were living in filth and rescuers had to wear protective equipment to withstand noxious smell of ammonia and floors were covered in feces, Painter said. There were thousands of cockroaches and investigators also expected fleas and mites in the home.

“We’re talking about a place the animals have been held in that environment for so long with that waste on the floor has permeated every surface of the household,” Painter said. “I’ve seen a lot of causes for this. Sometimes it’s a compulsive or depressive disorder. There’s no one reason for someone to be an animal hoarder.”