If the rescue had come much later, six puppies and four kittens might have never seen the light of day again.

Instead, new homes will be sought for the animals found in the trunk of a car on a downtown parking lot near Horizon Casino Hotel Tuesday.

“Someone walking by heard the animals and reported it to the front desk about 11 a.m., and the casino started trying to page the owners,” said Lt. Linda Hearn of the Vicksburg Police Department.

Hearn didn’t wait. The car window was cracked, so she was able to unlock a door and pop a lever to open the trunk.

“It was in the heat of the sun. There was no shade at all. Even after the animals had been out and the trunk had cooled for a few minutes, we still got a reading of 95 degrees,” Hearn said.

Estimates were that the animals were confined without food or water nearly 12 hours before being found. They were taken to Vicksburg Animal Hospital.

Authorities found and arrested James Yarbrough, 31, and Sharon Langdon, 43, both of 1015 Mills Lane in Carthage.

Hearn said Yarbrough and Langdon said they were not aware it was against the law to leave animals in a locked car and that they did not intend to oversleep in the casino hotel, where they had been since 1:30 a.m.

Both were charged with one count per animal of confining a creature without food or water. Since there were 10 animals and the per-count fine is $273, each, if convicted, faces a potential fine of $2,730.

Langdon was in the Warren County Jail, and Yarbrough was in the Issaquena County Jail this morning with bond set at $2,784.60 each.

The animals were treated by Dr. Jon Ruggles. He said the kittens seemed to be 6 to 7 weeks old, and the puppies, which appeared to be dachshund mixes, were 4 to 6 weeks old.

Both the puppies and kittens were dehydrated and infested with worms, but would be fine after treatment, Ruggles said.

“It’s a good thing you found them when you did,” Ruggles told Hearn.

Georgia Lynn, president of the Vicksburg-Warren Humane Society, said the animals would soon be ready for adoption from the shelter.

“It’s just awful. They were so neglected they were lying in their own feces. I don’t know how anyone could not know this was wrong, but hopefully we’ll find them good homes soon,” Lynn said.

Hearn said the pair told her the animals were their pets and later said they raise animals to sell. She said she has asked Leake County officials to check the couple’s home to see if other animals may have been left behind.