By Pat Culverhouse

A second arrest has been made and another Doyline resident is looking at 72 counts of cruelty to animals in connection with an alleged unlicensed puppy mill operation where animals were found crated and penned in deplorable conditions.

Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker said 68-year-old Alan D. Crowley now joins his wife, Kimberly, in parish custody after deputies arrested him just after 5:30 p.m. Thursday. Alan Crowley is housed at Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center. No bond has been set.

Volunteers from the animal rescue organization LaMa, assisted by nearly a dozen Webster Parish deputies and animal control, began removing and documenting the dogs early Friday morning. All the animals will be taken to a veterinarian for inspection and preparation for potential adoption.

LaMa’s rescue operation involved several volunteers and a quantity of animal carriers. Donations to assist in its efforts can be made by contacting the group’s web page at https://lamaanimalrescue.org/donate .

Webster deputies had begun an investigation after nearly two dozen dogs were dumped on Dement Road last Sunday. Evidence reportedly led to the Crowley residence in the 300 block of Stable Dr. in Doyline.

There, deputies found approximately 60 dogs of various breeds, ages and sizes living in squalor in pens and crates inside the residence and in a large barn/kennel on the property. Many were without food or water, and being held in an environment filled with feces and urine.

While inspecting other areas of the Stable Dr. property, deputies reportedly also found the bodies of dead animals including dogs, a horse and goats.

“I’ve never seen anything like this. It is disgusting,” said WPSO Major Robert Hayden. Hayden headed the investigation that led to the arrests.

This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.