Mar 8, 2017 3 min read

A Bridgeville couple was arrested last week after two children and six animals – including an emaciated dog too weak to walk – were found living in “deplorable” conditions last month.

Bridgeville police Chief Chad King said officers were called Feb. 9 to a home at 146 Liberty St. after an 11-year-old boy was locked out of the home in 19-degree weather and was pounding on the door with a shovel trying to get back inside.

Officers were concerned the person inside might be suffering a drug overdose, so they forced their way into the home and were met at the door by Marcus Stancik, who passed out but awoke and attempted to push them out, King said.

Once inside, King said they found two “badly emaciated” pit bull-mix dogs and four cats. There was no running water in the house and only a spoiled chicken in the refrigerator, King said. Animal feces, debris and clothing was scattered across the house, King said.

“The house was pretty much deplorable,” King said.

The boy and a 16-year-old girl, who was not home at the time, were taken to Children and Youth Services and are now staying with their grandmother, King said.

Stancik, 30, and Bree Reitmeyer, 34, turned themselves in to Collier Township police Friday and were charged with two counts of child endangerment and six counts of animal cruelty. Stancik also is charged with aggravated assault and possession of drug paraphernalia.

They are being held in the Allegheny County jail, awaiting a preliminary hearing Monday before District Judge Maureen McGraw-Desmet. Stancik is being held on $30,000 bond, while Reitmeyer’s bail was set at $5,000.

King said the home was condemned.

The two dogs are being cared for by Animal Friends as they recover, while the cats were taken to foster homes. Animal Friends spokeswoman Shannon Tremblay said the male pit bull-mix, now named Cory, was so malnourished he could not walk and needed emergency veterinarian care that included two blood transfusions.

“We didn’t think he was going to make it,” Tremblay said. “He was in really bad shape.”

Cory spent a couple of weeks undergoing emergency treatment at a North Hills veterinary clinic before he was returned to Animal Friends.

“From there, he turned around,” Tremblay said. “He’s one of the sweetest dogs you’ll meet.”

The female dog, named Topanga by the staff, is doing better, but also has a long recovery ahead. Tremblay said it will take three or four more weeks before both dogs are a healthy weight, and she was unsure when the animals might be available for adoption.

Anyone who would like to help Animal Friends with medical costs can donate on the organization’s website at www.thinkingoutsidethecage.org.