JACKSON, MI – The criminal case against a self-proclaimed animal rescuer in Jackson accused of abandoning animals has ended in a guilty plea.
Makayla Mylin Stefaniuk pleaded guilty as charged on Sept. 23 to multiple animal cruelty charges, court records show.
Stefaniuk, 21, was charged with one felony count of animal abuse for abandoning 10 or more animals and six misdemeanor counts of improper burial of an animal, court records show.
Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 12 before Jackson County Circuit Judge Susan Jordan. She remains free on a $7,500 personal recognizance bond while awaiting sentencing.
On Sept. 6, 2024, a Jackson County Animal Control officer was called to do a welfare check on Stefaniuk’s Jackson home on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard after receiving a report of suspected animal abuse, Jackson County Animal Shelter Director Lydia Sattler said.
The officer arrived at the home and saw a clearly dead dog on the porch. He approached the home closer and saw through a window another dog that appeared to be holding the severed leg of another deceased dog in its mouth, Sattler said.
With probable cause that something illegal was occurring, the officer made entry into the home with Jackson police officers and discovered 19 dead animals, many in padlocked cages in various states of decomposition, and nine live animals in need of aid, Sattler said.
Among the dead were dogs, cats, turtles, ferrets, chickens and a rabbit, Sattler said.
Five cats and four dogs were rescued from the home and given medical treatment at the shelter. They have all since been given homes with new owners, Sattler said.
Prior to the discovery of the deceased animals, Stefaniuk was advertising herself as “Kay’s Animal Rescue and Rehoming” on a Facebook page offering help for pets in need of homes, Sattler said.
The Facebook page has since been deleted.
Stefaniuk told investigators she was in the process of moving when authorities discovered the animals prior to charges being authorized Oct. 23, Sattler said.
The State of Michigan requires a kennel license for anyone housing 10 or more animals. There is no record of Stefaniuk having a kennel license or her animal rescue registered as a business LLC.
She faces a maximum sentence of four years in prison.
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