GOOSE CREEK — A man was arrested on more than 70 charges relating to the mistreatment and improper care of dozens of dogs found in deplorable living conditions on his property, authorities said.
Loney Leroy Garrett, 77, of Goose Creek was arrested July 2 in relation to an investigation done on his property weeks prior. Garrett faces 35 counts of ill treatment of animals, 35 counts of failure to properly inoculate animals with rabies vaccines and four counts of improper burial, according to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office.
On June 22, deputies responded to his home off of Garretts Court to find 35 dogs kept in unsanitary conditions. A number of the animals were found in feces- and urine-filled crates, authorities said. Several water buckets were dirtied and contaminated with feces.
Deputies searched the property and found bones and skulls of four deceased dogs. Two of the skulls were buried just beneath the ground’s surface, deputies said.
There was a rancid stench on the property, said Aldwin Roman, vice president of Charleston Animal Society. He and Chief Veterinary Officer Dr. Elizabeth Fuller were among the many on scene to assist investigators in retrieving the animals on July 2, weeks after the initial investigation.
The poor condition of the dogs’ skins and coats were a sign that the animals had been living in unacceptable conditions for quite some time, Roman said.
“(The environmental conditions were) completely inhumane, and that’s just not appropriate — and that was before we even started finding the bones of animals,” Roman told The Post and Courier.
Investigators contend that Garrett had brought the dogs across state lines from Tennessee without securing appropriate health certificates or properly vaccinating them for rabies.
The majority of dogs found on the property were hounds and mixed breeds, Roman said. Authorities also found a guinea pig.
The dogs are being housed at Charleston Animal Society’s Moncks Corner campus, according to Roman.
Berkeley County Animal Cruelty Investigator, with the help of the Berkeley County Animal Control and Charleston Animal Society, remove dogs from a Goose Creek property.
Garrett is scheduled to have a bond hearing at 6:30 p.m. July 3, according to court records.
Deputies also charged Garrett’s son, Loney Garrett Jr., with one count of ill treatment of animals.
“These were not just violations of the law, these were acts of cruelty and neglect that put both animals and our community at risk,” Berkeley County Sheriff Duane Lewis said in a statement.
Not his first bout of animal cruelty
Garrett pleaded guilty to 10 counts of animal cruelty in January 2015, The Post and Courier previously reported.
He was sentenced to two years in prison and five years of probation.
Then 66 and reportedly in poor physical health, Garrett’s attorney contended that was a factor in how he’d managed to leave dozens of dogs to rot on his Goose Creek property.
Investigators found the remains of more than 200 hound dogs in the mud behind Garrett’s mobile home off Howe Hall Road in 2013. The carcasses were in various states of decomposition and were not properly buried. Some skulls were found with bullet holes in them.
Some 45 animals were found alive but severely emaciated, the newspaper reported.
Family members told Judge Roger Young in 2015 that Garrett had always loved dogs but that his passion had gotten out of control.
Attorney Melisa Gay testified that Garrett suffered from mental health issues and post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from his military service. In addition, Garrett had prostate surgery to treat cancer in 2012, leaving him physically unable to care for the animals.
Young sentenced Garrett to prison because he felt Garrett would not be able to receive proper medical care at the Berkeley County jail.
“I don’t think you got a mean bone in your body, sounds like you got in over your head,” Young told Garrett.
For Roman, seeing the similar circumstances of Garrett’s case more than a decade later is disheartening.
“It just seemed like it was happening all over again,” Roman said.
Overcrowded with animals
Roman noted the addition of Garrett’s 35 animals came at one of the busiest times of year for CAS, as animal intakes traditionally rise during summer months.
Adding to that, Charleston Animal Society recently partnered with the Berkeley Animal Center to take over operations of the Moncks Corner campus. Berkeley County Council brokered the deal on May 27 and the new management arrangement went into affect on July 1, according to prior reporting by The Post and Courier.
Berkeley County Animal Cruelty Investigator, with the help of the Berkeley County Animal Control and Charleston Animal Society, remove dogs from a Goose Creek property where Loney Leroy Garrett, 77, was arrested on more than 70 charges relating to the mistreatment and improper care of dozens of dogs Wednesday, July 2, 2025, in Goose Creek.
Roman and his team had been aware of the likelihood that CAS would assume care of Garrett’s animals for some time and had been preparing for the recovery mission.
“Our reaction was: ‘We need to get these animals out of there, this can’t wait,’ ” Roman said. “We can’t wait until things are comfortable or we’ve got a good handle. We needed to get (the animals) out. That was imperative.”
