Sandra Glidewell, who had been working as a part-time employee at You've Got A Friend Veterinary Clinic in Mascotte for about two years, was arrested on aggravated animal abuse charges. Glidewell had also been fostering several animals.
Clinic owner Joyce Alderman said she fired Glidewell, 48, after the allegations surfaced Tuesday.
"She never demonstrated any abuse towards any animal at this clinic," Alderman said. "She did not have that record or reputation when she was hired."
Deputies responded to a call about 7 a.m. alleging that Glidewell was killing her animals with a hammer.
Two cats that "appeared to have been bludgeoned and then drowned" were found at the bottom of a swimming pool upon arrival, said sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Jim Vachon.
Deputies also found a dead Chihuahua wrapped in a blanket on a chair.
Glidewell's daughter told deputies her mother was "extremely upset" after one of their Chihuahuas escaped from an outside fence and drowned in the swimming pool Monday night, according to an arrest affidavit. The girl said she then saw her mother throwing a cat on the ground and then attempted to hit another cat in the head with a hammer.
Although the daughter said she grabbed her mother's hand to stop her, she said she yelled back "at her to let go or there will be more," according to the affidavit.
The girl said she later found the two cats "still alive but barely breathing" and said her mother then "took the cats, one by one, to the pool and drowned them," according to the affidavit.
Deputies do not know why Glidewell killed the animals. Other animals, including four dogs, three cats and four birds were taken from her home and will remain at Lake County Animal Services until a court hearing, Vachon said.
(Orlando Sentinel-Dec 23, 2014)
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