SKOWHEGAN -- Decayed carcasses of cats and dogs were removed from a house littered with feces and urine in Bingham this week in what the sheriff's department is calling a "horrific" case of animal cruelty.

For some of the animals at the house on Lander Avenue, only fur and bones remained, Detective Lt. Carl E. Gottardi said Tuesday.

"We'd received reports where there animals such as cats and dogs and chinchillas that were reportedly abandoned at the residence, either inside or out, for quite some time and it didn't appear they had been fed or cared for," Gottardi said.

Several cats and at least two dogs were still alive inside the house, living in "very squalid and poor conditions," he said.

The living animals were injured and emaciated from lack of food, he said.

The Somerset County Sheriff's Department obtained a search warrant for the house and went there with an investigator from Maine Animal Welfare, of Augusta, Gottardi said.

He said the home is furnished, but it appears no one has lived there for some time. Police are familiar with the people who lived there, but as of Tuesday afternoon no one had been charged in the case.

"It's hard to actually say how many animals you had because some things had been dead for quite some time and there was fur and bones and some things that may have been in plastic bags," Gottardi said. "There was a lot of feces around and there were other things that just made it totally unbearable and it was no place for animals, let alone humans, to be living in.

"Between the presence of feces, urine ... rotting things -- the stench was extremely horrific."

The live animals were collected by the state animal welfare worker, who also photographed the animal remains. Findings will be presented to the district attorney for possible prosecution.

Gottardi said there have been two other animal cruelty cases in recent months in Somerset County. One was in Embden where two dogs, a little goat and some chickens were left outside for the winter.

Another case was in Norridgewock and involved abused dogs, he said. In both cases, charges were brought, Gottardi said.

"In the Embden case, two dogs were tied together outside. They had no food, no water," he said. "There also was the cutest little miniature goat -- the cutest thing you ever saw -- a little dinky goat with little horns.

"You could tell he had bonded with the dogs, he wouldn't leave the dogs' side -- it was like they were the three amigos."

He said those animals survived and good homes were found for them.

Gottardi said the names and exact address of the Lander Avenue case in Bingham will not be released until any charges are brought. He said depending on the severity of the abuse, the charges could be raised to the felony level.

Doug Harlow -- 861-9244

dharlow@centralmaine.com