Lori Grisham

USA TODAY Network

An estimated 50 dead cats, which were stored in freezers, and at least 30 live ones are in the process of being removed from a Florida home Wednesday, Animal Care and Control captain David Walesky told USA TODAY Network.

"We have not yet begun to count the dead ones, but staff has guesstimated the total to be around 50," he wrote in an e-mail.

"I do know that the bodies are spread among 4 separate freezers, which of course is the most unusual aspect of this."

Walesky did not have the final count of live cats and kittens, but said it would likely be less than 40.

The discovery came after police went to Douglas Westcott's home with a search warrant and found the cats inside, according to ABC affiliate WPBF, which first reported the news.

Westcott has been taken into custody on charges of possessing child pornography, according to the South Beach (Fla.) County Sheriff's Office website.

Westcott has refused to voluntarily surrender the cats, according to Walesky, so Animal Care and Control will appeal to the courts for final custody of the animals.