Woman found dead in home, 28 dogs removed

James David Dickson | The Detroit News

Show Caption Hide Caption About 20 dogs removed from Detroit home The dogs were discovered inside a home where medics responded to a slip-and-fall death.

Detroit — After a 47-year-old woman was found dead at her east side home early Wednesday morning, Detroit Animal Care and Control officials removed 28 dogs from the home she shared with family, officials said.

Emergency Medical Technicians had to respond to the scene twice, said Dave Fornell, deputy chief of the Detroit Fire Department.

On first arrival, at 2:15 a.m., after being called about a woman who apparently had fallen in the home, medics were met by an "angry, possibly inebriated" man, who told them nothing had happened. They left the scene.

When a second call came in at about 3:27 a.m., a supervisor made the run on a call that a woman at the home was "unconscious." But he was met with a new obstacle: the dogs.

Detroit police were called to the scene to "make the scene safe" and soon "cornered the dogs at gunpoint," Fornell said, allowing medics to do their work. That was at about 3:45 a.m. and the scene was secure by 3:50 a.m.

Inside, medics found the woman on the floor of the bathroom, lifeless. They transported her body to St. John Hospital.

Officer Dan Donakowski, a Detroit Police Department spokesman, said the woman's injuries didn't appear to be related to the dogs.

"She had some medical issues," he said.

Tamekia Ashford, spokeswoman for Detroit Animal Care and Control, said Detroit residents are allowed to have four dogs per household.

In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, the organization said there were a total of 32 dogs in the home and per city ordinance, let four dogs remain in the house.

"The 28 dogs that were removed are in the care of DACC and are being examined by the veterinarian and appear to be in fair condition," the statement read.

"After the examinations are complete, the dogs will be placed with partnering agencies such as other local Animal Controls and rescue transfer partners."

The final cause of the woman's death will be made by the Wayne County Medical Examiner's office.

jdickson@detroitnews.com