How Woman’s Toes Injured In Berino, NM Still A Mystery

An elderly Berino woman is in the hospital recovering from Indiscernible injuries to her toes investigators said could have been caused by animals or a medical condition.

A caretaker called the authorities after she discovered the wounds when she checked on the 85-year-old woman Tuesday morning.

“It could be something such as bed sores, a medical condition or it could have been animal predation,” said Dona Ana County Sheriffs Office Lt. Michael Kinney.

Some of the woman’s relatives, who said they live next door, said the woman’s injuries could not have been caused by her pets.

“I mean it wasn’t the dogs’ fault, it couldn’t have been the dogs”, said a family member.

Deputies removed seven dogs from the woman’s home and quarantined them at the Animal Services Center in Las Cruces. The pugs, chihuahuas and blue heeler wagged their tales, and whimpered as ABC-7 shot footage of them.

When asked if his grandmother had a medical condition, a man who identified himself as her grandson said he didn’t know.

“The house was not very well kept. there were several animals in the house, apparently some mice, maybe some pet rats. we haven’t been able to confirm that, so there’s a possibility that the injuries to this woman’s feet could have been sustained by an animal”, said Lt. Kinney.

It’s unclear if the woman lived alone or how the caretaker authorities mentioned helped the 85-year-old. Investigators did not release the woman’s current medical condition.