16 animals taken from Abbeville home with no AC; owners want them back

When the Abbeville Police Department arrived at a home on Edwards Street, they noticed a bad odor coming from inside the house. The officers kicked down the door in fear there was a dead body inside.
Instead, what they learned was that there were 16 animals (10 cats and 6 dogs) running around a house with no air condition.
The couple who live in the house had an emergency and were in a Lafayette hospital for the last two weeks. The wife, whose husband, a former Marine, was in ICU, would get a ride every other day to Abbeville from Lafayette to check on the animals.
A neighbor became worried about the animals and called the police and the police jury’s animal control department when the neighbor noticed the owners were not home.
Police saw the animals had plenty of food and water in the house. The smell was from animal waste throughout the house.
The animals were removed from the home and taken by animal control for evaluation. It was not known if the animals were vaccinated.
In order for the owners to get their animals out of animal control, a bill of $480 has to be paid to the police jury. The jury charges $25 a day to impound each animal that is picked up for the first day and $5 each additional day.
Police Juror Wayne Touchet asked the jury if they can wave the $480 impound fee so the owners of the animals can get their animals back.
“We have 16 animals that got picked up that probably should not have been picked up,” said Touchet. “The owners would like their animals back. They don’t have the money to pay the impound fee.”
The police jury voted to wave the holding fee. Volunteers are also trying to help find homes for the animals until the couple return from the hospital.