Who is Antonella Rivoir? Florida pet sitter charged with animal cruelty after starving dog to death
SUNNY ISLE, FLORIDA: A Sunny Isle Beach woman is accused of neglecting two dogs, one of whom was starved to death, after she was hired to look after them.
Antonella Rivoir, 20, of Berwyn, Illinois, was arrested by the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department on Thursday, September 21, but later bonded out of the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center the following afternoon.
Rivoir was detained on two animal cruelty counts and was released on a $10,000 total bond.
What did Antonella Rivoir say after being released on bond?
“Respectfully, I can’t share my side of the story as (of) right now, but I do intend on speaking eventually,” Rivoir told Local 10 News while she walked out of jail.
“You have your own dog, don’t you? What if the dogs were finicky and they didn’t want to eat or drink?” she was asked by the outlet to which she responded, “No comment".
How were the authorities informed about the incident?
According to an arrest report from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department, officers were dispatched to an apartment near the 16000 block of Collins Avenue on June 27 after a housekeeper made a harrowing discovery.
Owner Patricia Gutierrez told the authorities that she and her partner left the country on May 30, and were scheduled to be away for a month.
When was Antonella Rivoir hired?
Gutierrez hired the 20-year-old before leaving for her trip. Rivoir was told to stay in her apartment and take care of her cat and five dogs full-time while she was away on vacation.
She noted that she gave her detailed instructions on how to care for her pets before she left.
Police said Gutierrez told her1 housekeeper to go clean her apartment a few days before returning home.
What did the housekeeper see?
Police said that the housekeeper arrived at an apartment covered in urine and feces.
She said the pets in the home looked “sad” and appeared to be malnourished and said she had never seen the home so filthy after working there for a year.
The housekeeper would then notice that “Daisy,” an eight-year-old Pomeranian and “Lucy,” a 13-year-old Pomeranian, were lying down stiff and unable to walk.
Later she took both dogs to a veterinarian in Surfside. Police said both dogs were later taken in an ambulance to an Aventura animal hospital due to their “severe condition.”
One of the dogs was able to recover
Authorities said Daisy was given CPR once both dogs arrived in Aventura, but couldn’t be saved. Fortunately, Lucy was able to recover, but had bruises all over her body.
“When Daisy laid unconscious, they (Rivoir and her boyfriend) were out snorkeling,” Gutierrez told the outlet.
How did Daisy die?
A necropsy report stated that Daisy died due to complications of neglect and severe dehydration.
“They were not given food or water for 10 days,” Gutierrez said. She said that after arriving back home and reviewing camera footage, she saw one clip that showed Daisy following Rivoir into the bedroom without a camera and then heard Daisy “squeal in pain.”
Antonella Rivoir purposefully unplugged the cameras
Gutierrez said that a few moments later the video showed Daisy limping. The authorities were informed that she believed Rivoir purposefully unplugged the cameras at certain times so they would not record.
She also said that she left an adequate quantity of food for her pets throughout the time she was gone, but none of it was provided and none of their required medication was given to them.
“I can only tell you there are people that are evil,” Sunny Isles Beach police Sgt Melissa Porro told the outlet.
Rivoir is facing two counts of animal cruelty with intent to injure or kill, according to jail records.