Abused animals from Onalaska home could have fate determined by vet soon

Humane society caring for mistreated animals, costing $1,000 a day.

The fate of several animals mistreated at a town of Onalaska home could depend on a diagnosis from a veterinarian.

In the next 30 days, Judge Ramona Gonzalez wants a veterinarian to examine the animals owned by Linda and Carol West.

Carol West, 74, and her daughter Linda West, 37, are scheduled to be tried later this year for the severe abuse of dogs, horses and other animals on their property.

The two were charged with 29 crimes each back on Jan. 25. Two of those crimes initially included child neglect of Carol’s 8- and 11-year-old children. Six were felonies for the mistreatment of animals and 21 more misdemeanors, also for mistreatment of animals, which were found starving, without water and abused.

The animals were taken to the Coulee Region Humane Society after an inspection of the West home. It’s costing $1,000 a day to care for them.

Police found 44 rats in a freezer – next to food – 32 more in cages at their home. They also seized 16 horses, eight dogs and a cat.

Inspectors say the horses’ hooves were so overgrown the animals were unable to walk. 

Many of the animals were under fed, had little or no water and lived in filthy conditions, locked in cages or corrals.

When police finally inspected the home at N577 Hauser Rd., they had to wear gas masks as feces and urine was everywhere. 

“The West property was the worst property I’ve ever been to in my entire life, as far as cleanliness,” La Crosse County sheriff’s deputy Rich Amundsen told the court back in January. 

He investigated the house in October, finding piles of garbage everywhere with lanes in between to walk through. 

The investigation came after 20 years of complaints related to the mother and daughter’s place. A neighbor provoked it, complaining about a horse belonging to Linda West tearing up his lawn.

“During a brief conversation with Linda, I talked about the deplorable conditions in the home and she responded, ‘It isn’t that bad,'” Amundsen said back in January.

Kathy KasaKaitas from the Coulee Region Humane Society said dogs had sore spots on their skin and fur.

“There was so much feces in the kennel that the dog was to the top of the wire cage, and it was constantly rubbing on the dog,” she told the court in January.