A Bloomington woman has been charged with seven misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty after Animal Control reported finding four dogs abandoned in a home on Short Chute Road, along with three dead puppies and the remains of a fourth.

Billie Jo Jaggers, 42, was charged July 8 with seven Class A misdemeanors. She was arrested on a warrant on July 25.

Jaggers appeared in court July 26 and pleaded not guilty. Public defender Daniel Reuter was appointed to represent her. A jury trial has been scheduled for Aug. 28.

A police report says Jaggers left the dogs in a home where had been living. She had been evicted on May 9.

Reuter said last week that his client believed the animals were being picked up by her estranged husband, who was supposed to care for them.

“It was a very unfortunate accident,” Reuter said.

“She is very, very distressed at what happened. She certainly didn’t intend anything like that to happen.”

Brown County Animal Control Officer Amanda Sisson responded to the home in the 9800 block of Short Chute Road on May 20 after receiving a call about a hound dog that had belonged to Jaggers getting into trash up and down the road.

The caller reported that he believed Jaggers had moved and left her dogs.

Sisson found two thin, timid dogs at the home. No people were there, her report said.

She looked inside and reported seeing another dog in the front bedroom. A window was open about eight inches, so Sisson gave the dog a can of food through the window. There was no food or water in the room, she reported.

She put cans of dog food outside for the dogs out there until she could do a follow-up visit. Sisson left a door hanger taped to the door so she could see if anyone entered the home before she could return the next day.

On May 21, Sisson learned that Jaggers had been evicted 12 days earlier. The homeowners said they had not entered the home since she moved out. They agreed to let Sisson in.

Inside, Sisson reported finding three dogs and the bodies of four deceased puppies that looked to have been about 4 weeks old. The smell in the bathroom where the puppies were was “overwhelming,” her report said. There was no food or water in the home, she wrote.

All three dogs removed from the home were covered in fleas. They were taken to the Brown County Humane Society.

On May 23, Sisson returned to the home to try to catch the fourth hound dog, which was running lose on the property. It also was taken to the humane society. It was “very thin” and had a skin condition, Sisson reported.

Veterinarian Dr. Jodi Lovejoy went to the humane society to examine the dogs and reported that they were in “emaciated condition and in immediate jeopardy” when they were impounded.