CLEVELAND — 68-year-old Barbara Wible, who is facing numerous charges of cruelty to animals in two counties, appeared before a judge in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court on Thursday morning.
During her brief appearance, Wible pleaded not guilty as the judge set a personal bond at $10,000. As a condition of her bond, the judge also ordered that Wible is prohibited from owning, possessing or caring for animals at this time.
The case has been assigned to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Peter J. Corrigan with her first pretrial set for Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 9 a.m.
The hearing comes nearly two months after Wible was indicted “for severely neglecting 36 dogs at her Parma residence,” which authorities say resulted in the deaths of 14.
“This woman operated to the public under the guise of helping dogs in need of a home, and then caused the death of 13 dogs and severely harmed 23 dogs in our county alone,” said Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley, with another dog having to be euthanized since that statement. “I hope this truly horrific case does not deter people from adopting dogs from reputable rescue organizations. If you have any concerns about animal mistreatment or abuse, you can report them to your local animal control officers and/or police department.”
The prosecutor’s office says the situation dates back to June 2 when Parma police and fire responded to a welfare check at a residence near West 54th Street and West Ridgewood Drive.
“When officers arrived, there was a strong odor coming from the residence and numerous dog cages and feces were found inside the garage,” according to a previous press release.
The investigation showed a total of 36 dogs were locked in cages inside the residence for an extended period of time, according to the prosecutor’s office.
“All 36 dogs found were without food or water, some dogs had not been fed since March,” the press release continued.
Wible, who is the president and co-founder of a dog rescue known as Canine Lifeline, also faces similar charges in Portage County where authorities say 146 dogs were found dead at her property in Mantua back on June 16.
