*Editor's Note: This story was updated on Saturday, May 4 to include an interview with Alma Winston, one of the women whose animals were seized by animals services. It was edited again on May 6, after animal services updated the total number of animals seized to approximately 300.
SHINGLE SPRINGS, Calif. — Hundreds of animals were removed from a Shingle Springs home Thursday, in a case that neighbor Kimberly Simpson is calling a "classic case of mental illness...hoarding."
El Dorado County Animal Services sent officers to a home on Lonesome Dove Drive on May 2 and found, based on the conditions of the animals, that this was a case of "animal neglect and a non-licensed animal kennel," the department said in a statement to ABC10.
Based on what they saw at the home, Animal Services got a search warrant and removed approximately 300 animals, including dogs, birds, horses, alpacas, and other livestock, from the property. All of the animals were taken to Animal Services shelters.
According to Simpson, this is the culmination of years of reporting the neglect - but it isn't anyone's fault that it took so long to remove the animals from the home.
"I friended her because she was my next door neighbor and she would tell me how many horses she had and, you know, how many dogs she had," Simpson said. "She said there were 165 dogs in the home...and I had a hard time believing that."
An interview with resident Alma Winston confirms that the animals were taken in by her and her wife as part of an unlicensed, private rescue. Winston said that they rent the main house where the dogs were being kept, and they live in a manufactured home on the property that they paid for.
The couple shares the manufactured home with Winston's elderly mother and between 50 and 60 dogs.
"(The sanctuary is) a place that we have taken in every animal that has come to us," she said, adding that people from across the Country have sent them animals to care for. "We've dedicated our lives to advocating for animals. We've taken in hundreds and hundreds of animals over the years and saved more than you can imagine."
Hundreds of animals removed from home
During our interview with the couple's neighbor, we were told that the barking of hundreds of dogs could be heard throughout the neighborhood. Winston does not deny that she had many dogs living in the main house - or that some of them were sick.
"A lot of dogs. And you know, that's probably the biggest concern that people have is, you know, the topic of animal hoarding comes up. And it's a very popular topic of the day," Winston said. "We're not hoarders by any means."
In response to neighbor's allegations that some of the dogs were ill, Winston said circovirus was brought to the property in 2014 when animals services "did a false search and seizure."
"When they came in 2014 they couldn't find anything wrong with any of the animals," she said, adding that her wife is now the main caretaker of the sick dogs and that they have been working with veterinarians. "None of the dogs were confiscated (in 2014), none were cited because they were all beautiful and healthy."
ABC10 reached out to El Dorado County Animal Services to confirm if Winston's accusation about circovirus being brought to the property in 2014 is true or false. We are waiting for a response.
On Friday Animal Services sent a statement regarding the seizure of Winston's animals this week. The statement reads, in part:
"Animal Services officers on the scene assessed the situation, and based on the conditions observed, the situation evolved into a case of animal neglect and a non-licensed animal kennel. A search warrant was obtained to remove the animals. Over 200 animals, including dogs, birds, horses, alpacas, and other livestock, have been removed from the property and relocated to the Animal Services shelters."
Animal Services said this is an active and ongoing criminal investigation. At this time they cannot provide further details or any information about the history of the case.
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WATCH MORE: Neighbor shocked by number of animals removed from Shingle Springs Home | Extended Interview
Hundreds of animals were removed from a Shingle Springs home in El Dorado County the week of April 29. Neighbor Kimberly Simpson spoke with ABC10 on Friday, saying She was aware that there were many animals on the property, but she was shocked when she learned just how many.