BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Two women were arrested after a starving puppy was found in a bathroom at a local home, Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey said Wednesday.
In a video posted to social media, Ivey said that the issue stemmed back to March 27, when a local animal rescue got hold of the dog and took it to a nearby animal hospital.
Recommended Videos
[WARNING: Images included in this story may be considered graphic to some viewers. Caution is advised.]
“They got there; the dog was extremely malnourished, emaciated — in just the worst of conditions,” Ivey said. “And it was a puppy that had been not fed, hadn’t given water (or) anything else.”
Ivey said that the two women in this case wouldn’t let investigators into the house because “they didn’t want us to see how bad the conditions were.”
As Ivey told it, the puppy had been kept in a bathroom without food, water or veterinary care, though its health finally deteriorated to the point that the women called in for a rescue.
But even after the puppy was eventually rescued, investigators found that the animal was so malnourished that it couldn’t even stand up, Ivey added.
“Our veterinarians told us that on the scale of 1-9, which is the scale that’s used to tell the health and condition of the dog, this dog was a one,” he said. “Basically, this dog was bones with skin.”
However, Ivey stated that the women claimed they didn’t know anything was wrong with the dog.
“Well, guess what? Trick or treat: you know something’s wrong now because you’re about to go to jail for it,” Ivey said.
The two women were identified as Alexza Ramos, 26, and Keishawna Mass, 26.
Both women face charges of animal cruelty and keeping an animal enclosed without exercise or fresh air.
In the meantime, Ivey reminded residents to report any cases of animal abuse by calling (321) 633-2024.
According to an affidavit for Mass’ arrest warrant, she had purchased the dog in November 2024 from a former co-worker and lacked the financial and transportation means to bring it in for veterinary care, describing the dog as being “in really bad shape” when she bought him. Mass called Brevard County Animal Care Center (BCACC) on March 16 requesting that the county come pick up a “stray” dog, yet allegedly later said that she would transport it herself, which she never did, the affidavit states.
Come March 23, Mass called BCACC again, requesting the dog be picked up, and BCACC said it could not facilitate the request because more than six days had passed from the original call, according to the affidavit. Mass at this point still did not bring in the dog herself, the affidavit states.
On March 27, Ramos texted a woman who then retrieved the dog and successfully brought it to the Eau Gallie Animal Specialty and Emergency Center the same day, according to the affidavit. The woman said that Ramos had texted her a picture of the dog in a purported effort “to help a dying puppy,” the affidavit states.
The dog, which was four to five months old, died March 30 while at BCACC, according to the affidavit.