LAKESIDE, Calif. -- A do-it-yourself animal rescuer keeping 60 dogs penned inside her 750-square-foot East County house was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of animal cruelty and neglect.

Authorities found the canines -- mostly boxers and Chihuahuas, along with a few small terriers -- in dirty cages stacked throughout 65-year-old Alice Via's two-bedroom Moreno Avenue home, Dan DeSousa of San Diego County Animal Services said.

"Many of the dogs have skin conditions, upper respiratory disease or other illnesses," DeSousa said. "In addition, most ... have injuries to their feet and noses from trying to escape from their crates."

Veterinarians evaluated the animals before taking them to various county shelters.

Via is expected to face numerous animal cruelty and neglect charges, according to DeSousa.

"These dogs were kept in crates, from what we're being told, up to 23 hours a day," he said. "It's not the life for an animal."

People without a kennel license -- which Via lacked -- are limited to a maximum of six dogs per residential property in the county, DeSousa noted.

Despite the "appalling" conditions in the house, Via, who runs the private shelter and dog-adoption service under the name San Diego Boxer Rescue, apparently "had the best of intentions" in taking in the canines, DeSousa said. The animals were well-fed, though many had no water in their cages.

"She got way in over her head," DeSousa added. "She had nobody to help her."

The county was tipped off to the situation at Via's home by a prospective animal adopter who went there several days ago and was disgusted by the "overpowering" smell and other unsanitary conditions, the spokesman said.