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Former neighbor says Billings man charged with animal abuse allegedly did same at Heights home

Bigelow home.jpg
Posted at 8:52 PM, Mar 09, 2022
and last updated 2022-03-10 10:10:04-05

Questions continue to swirl around a recent animal abuse case in Billings as new abuse allegations have emerged on another property owned by the Bigelow family.

Michael Bigelow, 35, is facing multiple felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty after 14 dogs were found dead on his property and 19 more were rescued in need of immediate care.

Bigelow, charged with four felonies and nine misdemeanors, lives with his mother at a home on Covert Lane in Billings Heights.

A neighbor who lived four years on the same street says he saw the story about animal cruelty on Tuesday.

He wanted to talk about what he had seen from 2016 to 2020.

Zach Phelps says he complained dozens of times to animal control about animals on the Bigelow property that was next to his backyard.

"Fifteen to 20 dogs, cats, goats, chickens, roosters," Phelps said. "On the back porch, he would pick them up, throw them off the porch. And the porch is about four feet off the ground. He's just thrown them out there and they never picked up their dog waste. It's just straight-up abuse, neglect all the way around."

Q2 asked Bigelow's mother, Cammy, about those allegations.

She declined to speak on camera but confirmed all complaints were about dogs barking.

She didn't comment on the charges her son is facing.

Cammy also says she has a Billings small animals permit, which means she may have more than four licensed dogs in her home at one time.

Q2 News also reached out to animal control with both the city and the county, about complaints multiple residents said they've made over the years regarding the Bigelows.

The city says it's looking into it but is not yet able to respond.