Four malnourished children, two locked in dog crate, found on Texas property

RHOME, Texas (WGNO) -- Texas deputies responding to a domestic disturbance call found four malnourished children, two of whom were locked inside a dog crate, Wise County Chief Deputy Craig Johnson said Tuesday.

Deputies responded to a “shop-type” outbuilding near Rhome, which lies about 25 miles northwest of Fort Worth, after receiving a call around 7:20 a.m. reporting “some sort of physical altercation or argument,” Johnson said.

Investigators found four children inside the residence, “two of which were locked in a dog crate, one was laying on a blanket, one was laying on a toddler bed,” Johnson said. “All of them were filthy, covered in fecal material and appeared to be a in a state of neglect.”

The children are 1, 3, 4 and 5 years old. Johnson said the woman living at the property is the biological mother of all four; the man is the biological father of one.

Two of the children, a 5-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl, were locked inside a 3-by-3 foot kennel, according to the Star-Telegram.