NORWICH — The Norwich Police Department concluded a 20-day long animal cruelty investigation on June 23 involving two Norwich residents and the death of a dog.

Police charged Todd A Talbot, 39, and Sherri Marie Campbell, 52, with torturing and injuring an animal, overdriving and failure to provide proper nourishment, the police report said.

On June 3, officers found a “badly decomposed” adult male dog inside of a small wire cage behind a barn on 22 Clinton Street, Chief Reuben Roach said. The dog was a mixed breed, Roach said, and police estimated the age of the dog to have been between two and six.

The dog’s cause of death is undetermined, Roach said, but he described the dog being placed in a cage with no food or water.

The dog was dropped off to Talbot and Campbell by his owner, who left Norwich to travel to Albany for medical treatment, Roach said. Roach said police are unsure of the reasoning behind the motive of the two individuals, but he said they seemed to have a lack of concern even after being arrested.

“This was a particularly disturbing case, and the complete lack of empathy and care that Sherri and Todd showed, is astounding,” Roach said in the report.

Both Talbot and Campbell were released on appearance tickets, the report said, and they will appear at Norwich City Court at a later date. More charges are to be expected, the report said.

Cases like this are rare, Roach said, but the police department takes them very seriously and utilizes their dog control officer. He said those who have animal cruelty or neglect concerns should report them to the police department.