Animal Cruelty Felon Strikes Again -South Carolina
Skulls and bones found a second time...
This disgusting case of cruelty is one that could’ve been completely avoided given the proper punishment. But what if the punishment needed isn’t even a legal option? No one should have the opportunity to abuse one animal for a second time -let alone dozens. Didn’t we already learn that they cannot be trusted?
Since we know it takes a multitude of attacks and cruelty cases for lawmakers to come up with a decent plan, we have to stand together as animal lovers and become animal advocates. If you see something suspicious, call in an anonymous report -maybe ask a few trusted friends to do so as well. Keep calling until someone says they have seen the animal and make sure to keep an eye on that animal -it’s easy to hide abuse from many officers.
You might be saving an innocent life.
South Carolina's new cruelty case
Now, let’s talk about a gruesome discovery that came to light in the last month. The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office received multiple reports of possible neglect and mistreatment of animals at a Goose Creek residence; Goose Creek is a city within Berkeley County.
Upon obtaining a property search warrant, Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office partnered with Charleston Animal Society for the removal of 35 hounds and German shepherds. The dogs were crammed into wooden, makeshift crates that were too small for them to stand up in or lie down comfortably. The crates’ flooring was urine-soaked with caked up feces that the dogs lived every second in. They had zero access to clean food or water as their dishes were also caked with feces.
During a further investigation of the property, officers and CAS staff and volunteers located the remains of four other dogs. It’s unlikely these dogs were ever buried at all -just tossed out.
According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, Garrett is looking at 74 counts of animal cruelty-related charges -35 counts of ill treatment of animals, 35 counts of no rabies inoculations and four counts of improper burial. Authorities also learned that the animals were transported across the Tennessee border without the required health certificates or proof of rabies vaccinations.
His son, Loney Garret Jr. is also being charged with one count of ill treatment of animals. Very fitting that they share the same name and, for the love of God, please don’t make a third one.
This investigation started on June 22, which revealed that the dogs were being kept in “deplorable and unsanitary conditions,” and the dogs were finally removed on July 2. This seems like a ridiculous amount of time, but you have to remember that shelters and rescues aren’t ready for 35 animals to just appear in their facilities at any given moment.
I believe it took this long because CAS genuinely did not have the ability to provide treatment and housing for this many dogs. Seriously, the best thing you can do is sterilize your pets, and encourage everyone you know to do so as well, so shelters aren’t constantly full. Many pets impregnate strays and vice versa -it can even happen through a fence!
Didn’t I say this was the second time he’s abused dozens of animals? I meant hundreds.
WYFF 4, the day after
Taken on July 2, 2025. Retrieved from Charleston Facebook page.
The case that should've been the last...
Back in 2013, Garrett pleaded no contest to 10 counts of animal cruelty after 33 charges were dropped -two years into the case. His lawyers “feared if Garrett went to trial he would have been convicted of all 43 counts.” That should be the goal but he ended up doing two years in prison with five years of probation. The judge also ordered him to pay $100,000 to Animal Rescue & Relief as well as the local SPCA.
After over 200 piles of dog remains found and 45 live neglected dogs seized, that’s an absolute mockery! Officers reported that some of the skulls had bullet holes in them, which should add another layer of charges. It took over a year for all the dogs to be adopted besides one who, unfortunately, had to be euthanized.
When officers arrived at the residence, they saw about 45 dogs “barely hanging onto life,” and upon further investigation collected “thousands of dog bones.” His wife, of course, hammered down and said her husband “cared for those dogs” but he was unable to keep up with it after he got sick.
Well, twelve years into the future, we now know that’s a fat lie.
Garret should have been completely banned from having animals for the rest of his life, and this information should be shared with each state. With this level of cruelty, he should be subjected to annual property visits, as this type of evil almost always graduates to human victims. At the very least, they never stop bringing evil into the world.
Yes, for animal lovers it’s mostly about the animals' well being, but this is also a human crisis. Dozens of dogs that are unvaccinated and unaccounted for is a danger to every citizen around.
There’s no cure for rabies; please, know that!
Where is the hope?
Valliant Animal Rescue reported that this case is believed to be one of the largest and most widely covered cases in the history of South Carolina. If we can’t dish out a harsher punishment for a travesty at this level, then is there any hope?
The only hope is to stand together and do our part in reporting possible neglect and researching our future local lawmakers. Maybe there’s someone running who will actually clean up your community.
This is Loney Garrett, the man that was allowed to continue heinous and cruel acts on innocent dogs. First photo, 2015, retrieved from The Berkeley Observer. Second photo, 2025, retrieved from WCSC Live, per the Berkeley County Sheriff's office.
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