Local News in Brief : Woman Arrested in Animal Cruelty Case
The daughter of a Bell pet shop owner has been arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty for allegedly leaving animals without food and water during the Labor Day weekend heat wave.
Bell-Cudahy police and officials of the Los Angeles County Animal Care and Control found that a hamster, a bird and 56 goldfish had died from the suffocating heat inside Vicky’s Pet Shop, Detective Hector Camacho said.
Zoe Vidrio, 18, who was supposed to be looking after the store, is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 26 on the misdemeanor violation of the state Penal Code, authorities said.
The temperatures inside the Florence Avenue store, which was closed Sunday, reached 112 degrees, Camacho said. Dogs, cats, birds and other house pets suffered from shock and malnutrition, with eight hamsters and three box turtles requiring medical attention, Animal Control Officer Rosemarie Cardona said. But “they’re doing fine,” she said Wednesday.
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