Prosecutors charged a St. Paul woman listed as the founder of an animal rescue organization with 22 counts Monday after eight dogs were found dead last year and more than 20 were seized.

Eights charges against Carley Mackenzie Ryan, 36, involve animal torture, and the remaining are misdemeanors about how she allegedly kept the dogs.

In October, Cottage Grove police found eight deceased dogs discarded in a rural area. Police contacted the Anoka County sheriff’s office Oct. 18 to report they believed the dogs came from “For Furever,” an animal rescue in Andover. The website listed Ryan as the founder, according to the criminal complaint.

Another eight dogs seized from the animal rescue building later had to be euthanized, according to the Animal Humane Society.

The Anoka County attorney’s office charged Ryan with four counts of overwork/mistreat animal – torture, which allege Ryan neglected four pets, resulting in death or great bodily harm; another four counts are gross misdemeanors that say neglect resulted in substantial bodily harm to four pets.

Charges: Dogs found in dirty building

Later on Oct. 18, a deputy found a vehicle registered to Ryan behind a closed business on 7th Avenue Northwest north of Bunker Lake Boulevard in Andover. An investigator went to the building the next day and found no one there, “but the smell of feces was strong from the exterior of the building, and he was able to see six to eight dogs of various breeds and sizes running loose in the building as well as a significant number of other dogs in kennels,” the complaint said.

The property owner confirmed the tenant was Ryan, who was operating “For Furever.”

With a search warrant, the sheriff’s office and Animal Humane Society went to the building on Oct. 20. Ryan was there when the warrant was carried out.

When deputies went in the building, they “were met by the overwhelming odor of feces and urine,” the complaint said. “There were several dogs loose and the floor was wet and covered in a layer of excrement. After the dogs had been removed from the building and significant clean air had been introduced into the environment,” ammonia levels were found to be 44.7 to 48.1 parts per million, the complaint said.

The smell of ammonia can be detected at 5 parts per millions, “and increased levels and prolonged exposure for animals can cause infection, scarring of lung tissue and potential lifelong issues from the exposure,” the complaint said.

Twenty-two dogs were found in the building and taken to the Animal Humane Society. They’d been housed in cages that were too small and didn’t have bedding; none of the enclosures contained food or water, the complaint said.

“All 22 of the dogs had some form of fecal or urinary scald to their feet and urine staining or feces matted into their coat,” the complaint said. “The scalding (also known as burning) occurred due to the dog’s lack of access to a clean and dry place to stand or lay.”

The dogs weren’t healthy enough to be adopted without “some form of medical or behavioral treatment,” the complaint said.

Ryan acknowledged to law enforcement that the dogs found in Cottage Grove had come from her rescue. She said she acquired the puppies from a Sept. 30 auction and they contracted parvovirus about a week later.

While “highly contagious and deadly,” it’s “a treatable condition,” the complaint said.

Ryan reported the first two puppies died on Oct. 2 and the final puppy around Oct. 7 or 8. They hadn’t received licensed veterinary care, the complaint said.

Ryan “advised that she had some fluids on hand and fed the puppies a specialty food for easy digestion,” the complaint said.

The complaint said: “The failure to render any medical aid or medication for pain management means that the eight deceased puppies went through a painful and prolonged demise prior to their natural death at the Andover facility.”

Reached by phone by the Pioneer Press Monday, Ryan said she was not aware she had been charged. She was reviewing the criminal complaint before deciding whether she would comment.

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