When Ramsey County sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of animals abandoned in a home, conditions were so bad they had to put on hazmat suits to go inside. They found a dog and cat and took them to an animal hospital, but they were too unhealthy and had to be euthanized.

Deputies rescued an additional three dogs and a cat from the Vadnais Heights duplex, according to a felony animal cruelty charge filed this week against Melissa Marie Andren, 37.

Andren and her mother owned the duplex in the 3300 block of Arcade Street, but witnesses reported that Andren did not stay there after her mother died in November.

Witnesses said Andren “was aware of the animals left at the duplex and … claimed that she stopped by daily to feed them,” according to the criminal complaint. “Witnesses told investigators that others had offered to take the animals or suggested that she should give them up to a shelter,” but Andren “stated that she just could not do that.”

Deputies who responded June 2 saw dead flies on the windows, the floor covered in feces and reported “a horrible odor in the house,” the complaint said. The dog that later died was covered in feces, his hair was matted, he could barely stand and could not walk. The cat was extremely emaciated and had a sore with fluid leaking into its chest, according to the complaint and a search warrant affidavit.

After deputies found where Andren was staying in Maplewood, they arrested her there. She declined to give a statement without an attorney present. She was released from jail on her own recognizance and could not be reached for comment.