Cops take 100 animals from home; used for sacrificial offerings

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San Mateo County officials cited a South San Francisco woman for animal cruelty Tuesday after humane society officers removed up to 100 chickens, six pygmy goats, some rabbits, a pot-bellied pig and a turtle from the woman's house.

The animals were apparently being used as sacrificial offerings by people practicing the Santeria religion, according to Scot Delucchi, a spokesman for the Peninsula Humane Society.

The animals were living in filthy, crowded conditions, Delucchi said, and "many are sick, and many will have to be euthanized." A couple of hens were already dead.

Santeria combines African religion, native spirituality and elements of Catholicism -- and includes animal sacrifice.

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