Pennsylvania girl among 7 neglected children rescued from filthy home wanted blanket 'to keep her rats warm'

Pennsylvania police rescued seven neglected children from a "filthy" trailer home in Bucks County, north of Philadelphia, last month and arrested their parents after a community member called in an unusual sighting.

The caller reported seeing two children entering an abandoned trailer in the park — one of whom told an officer that she was looking for a blanket "to keep her rats warm because her family does not have much money left," according to an affidavit.

Pennridge Regional Police Department Chief Paul Dickinson described the case to Fox News Digital as "an unfortunate situation" but commended "the officers and the community for reporting it."

Authorities on May 19 arrested the children's parents, 47-year-old Shane Robertson and 37-year-old Crystal Robertson, and charged them with seven counts each of endangering the welfare of children.

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"Crystal Robertson stated that they were going through so much food she had to lock the refrigerator because they were ‘stealing’ everything," the police affidavit states.

Crystal Robertson also referred to her children as "garbage disposals with legs."

Officers at the scene opened the refrigerator, which was closed with a bicycle lock, and noted "very little food inside."

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Shane Robertson apparently lied to police about the number of children inside the house, saying that he had one other daughter — an "unkempt" 16-year-old girl who met with officers inside the home.

A social worker who arrived at the home after officers left to fill out a Childline Report found a total of seven children at the home, some of whom were "being hidden in a rear bedroom of the home" during the social worker's visit. The youngest of the seven children was 4 years old, and the oldest was the 16-year-old girl.

Shane Robertson admitted to police that he initially lied about the number of children inside because he "did not want to get in any trouble," police wrote.

In one bedroom, officers noted that the suspects slept in a bed with dirty sheets surrounded by animal cages. The floor was littered with garbage and the walls had holes in them.

A second room adjacent to theirs had missing sheetrock on the walls, a broken washing machine, no door, and was covered with garbage and dirty clothing. A third room had feces all over the ground, a "filthy" bed covered with a blanket that also had feces on it.

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"This room also housed approximately two dozen rats that were located in two different cages," police wrote. 

The bathroom did not have soap, toothpaste, or any other cleaning or hygenic products.

"The only notable food located in the home was for the animals," including two dogs, two turtles, two rabbits, snakes, toads, a four-legged reptile, and the two dozen rats, the affidavit states.

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All but one of the children were considered "clinically malnourished" after an exam and had various severe dental issues. None of the children had any formal education, "and all lacked basic knowledge," including simple writing, reading and spelling. Some did not know their own birthdays, and four had speech impediments. They also had social anxiety.

One of the children had a "dire" infestation of maggots in her hair, and another was diagnosed with ringworm.

On May 20, a day after their arrests, both parents were able to post 10% of their total $10,000 bail.