Photos courtesy of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

Vultures fill the lawn of Alexander M. Nelson's property in Hiwassee. Neighbors say the birds flocked to Nelson's yard to feed on an abundance of rats state police say Nelson fostered on his land.

HIWASSEE -- "It looked like the sky was blacked out."

That's how Larry Clark, who lives in the Pulaski County community of Hiwassee, described the hundreds of vultures that often flocked to his neighbor's yard to feed on an abundance of rats that state police say Alexander M. Nelson IV fostered on his Lead Mine Road property.

Nelson, owner of Classy Critters Pet Centers, has both Pulaski County and Roanoke home addresses.

Clark said that type of scene has made Nelson a nuisance to the neighborhood for the past two years.

This week, Virginia State Police charged Nelson with 200 counts of failure to bury dead animals after finding 200 rat carcasses covered by tarps on his property, according to a news release.

First Sgt. Mike Honaker said Wednesday that he could not comment on the case beyond the release.

It is the third time since May 2008 that authorities have investigated the problem.

Nelson's neighbors, most of whom said they did not want their names used in print, said Wednesday they rarely see Nelson, but they do see the evidence of his living habits and called it an unbearable environment.

A small hill area separates Clark's property from Nelson's. Clark said he hasn't been thrilled about some unexpected finds his dog has brought home recently -- dead rats and vulture heads.

He said on a windy day the stench of hundreds of dead rats greets him when he leaves his back door.

It's not uncommon, Clark said, to visit his neighbors and see patios or vehicles that vultures have vomited on after a feast.

Nelson could not be reached for comment Wednesday. An employee at Classy Critters said Nelson wasn't at the store, and phone calls to his Roanoke residence were not returned. The entrance to Nelson's Pulaski County property was blocked with tied cable.

According to the news release, state police received an anonymous complaint about a foul odor around Nelson's property and found hundreds of dead rats around the home.

Nelson told the trooper he had an agreement with a university in the area to dispose of the rats, according to the release.

The trooper's investigation revealed that no colleges or universities in the area were involved.

On June 10, 2008, Nelson was found guilty of the charge in Pulaski County General District Court, was ordered to clean them up and fined $250.

State police again received similar complaints in January that the rats had not been disposed of and that more rats had been brought in from an undisclosed location, according to the release.

Nelson was again charged with one count of failure to bury dead animals on Jan. 11 and warned by police to rid his property of the carcasses. The next hearing is set for Oct. 27.

After being notified of the problem again last month, state police were more heavy-handed with their charges, hitting Nelson with 200 counts -- one for each rat found on the property.

"It just kind of creates an unhealthy situation," said Steve Dietrich of the state Department of Environmental Quality.

Dietrich said after a Jan. 30 site visit that statements and pictures were taken, and agencies such as the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office were informed of the problem.

Dietrich said the DEQ's investigation noted that Nelson had been storing the rats in various freezers inside his house and in two root cellars on his property.

Clark and other neighbors said that they have been bothered by 10 large dogs that Nelson keeps on the property.

Clark said his wife's aunt used to own the house Nelson lives in.

"We never had any problems like this until this guy moved in," Clark said.

Nelson was found guilty in 2003 of multiple counts of cruelty to animals for keeping too many animals -- including snakes, birds, rabbits and mice -- in the cages at Classy Critters' Radford location and failing to adequately clean those cages.

Radford's animal control officer at the time testified that after letting Nelson off with two warnings, he returned a third time to find mice crammed into cages and living atop 2 to 3 inches of feces; bird cages covered in waste and roaches crawling through their food bowls.