Merced County dairy worker accused of animal abuse to be arraigned on felony charge
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Merced deputies arrested dairy worker on suspicion of felony animal cruelty.
- Security footage allegedly shows the worker abuse two dairy cows.
- Court set arraignment Wednesday as prosecutors pursue felony count based on video.
A Merced County man is scheduled to appear in court this week to be arraigned on a charge of felony animal cruelty for allegedly abusing cows on a Merced County dairy farm last week.
Salvador Vargas, 28, of Los Banos, was arrested after deputies responded to a report of alleged animal abuse at a dairy located in the 20100 block of Copa De Orange Avenue in Los Banos on Sept. 21.
According to Merced County Superior Court documents, Vargas has been charged with one count of felony cruelty to an animal. A Merced County Sheriff’s Office case report indicates a deputy spoke with the dairy’s owner who told the deputy he had security footage of an employee allegedly abusing two cows shortly before 1 a.m. on Sept. 20.
The report indicates that a supervisor at the dairy notified the dairy owner, after the supervisor reviewed security footage , and noticed that two cows had not produced any milk.
The case report says a deputy observed footage that allegedly shows Vargas using a metal rod to jab two cows at the dairy a total of 17 times. The report also states the video allegedly shows Vargas using what is referred to as a “hot shot” or a taser prod on the animals 11 times.
The video allegedly shows Vargas tie the cows down, whip them with a rope and while the animals were tied, insert a water hose into the nose of one of the cows, allegedly preventing it from breathing for period of about 30 seconds, the report says.
Vargas was scheduled to appear in Merced County Superior Court at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday for an arraignment hearing.
This story was originally published October 8, 2025 at 9:38 AM.