Dozens of animals were seized by the BC SPCA Monday afternoon as the animal welfare agency executed a search warrant at a home in rural Langley.
A total of 18 cats and 21 farm animals were removed from the property, at 216th Street near 56th Avenue.
The farm animals included roosters, hens, goats and a potbellied pig.
Animal protection officers also examined 40 dogs at the site, and removed several of the canines from the facility.
Marcie Moriarty, the SPCA's chief prevention and enforcement officer, said the raid was launched after receiving a complaint that animals were in distress.
The BC SPCA will only remove animals that require immediate care and meet the definition of distress under the province's Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
The animals are not part of a puppy or cat mill or breeding situation, Moriarty added. She says some of the animals are suffering medical issues and malnutrition.
Dogs and cats removed by protection officers will be brought to the Vancouver branch for assessment and treatment, and farm animals will be taken to the Good Shepherd Barn at its Surrey Branch.
The property's caretaker said she's been doing everything she can to care for the animals.
"When you're a rescue and you're not the SPCA... you are blessed when you get a donation and the rest of the time you put it up yourself," Sandy Simans told CTV during the seizure.
"You do the very best you can and you do it with more passion than anybody does. You do it for long hours and you give up your social life and you give up a lot of stuff, which is what we do here."
At least one of the animals at the facility belongs to a person who'd given it to Simans for care while he recovered from an illness. The dog owner said he had high praise for her.
The SPCA said the raid was the result of tips from the public, but Simans said she hasn't let anyone on to the property since 2012.
With a report from CTV Vancouver's Penny Daflos
