A Shelton woman faced charges of child abuse and animal cruelty at her arraignment Thursday for allegedly beating her son and neglecting a cat.

Police say they arrested Faith Taylor, 37, after a child services worker noticed multiple injuries on her 9-year-old son, who has autism.

The boy had bruises and cuts all over his body -- and investigators blame Taylor for putting them there.

Court documents say it was the boy's father who contacted the Department of Children and Families after the victim returned from Taylor's home on Howe Avenue with bruises and cuts all over his body.

The DCF worker took pictures of injuries on the boy's face, neck, chest and arm, police say. When they interviewed Taylor regarding the injuries, they say she admitted to causing them.

But her boyfriend denies that she abused the boy. 

According to John Miko, the boyfriend, the child was violently aggressive toward his younger sister, so Taylor intervened.

"She spanked her son, but she did not abuse him," he says. "It was not overboard. It was not aggressive."

Police say they also found a dying cat in the home. 

"Upon inspecting it, we heard the cat meow faintly because it was still alive," says Detective Richard Bango, of the Shelton Police Department. "So we rushed it to the animal hospital here in town. Once we got there, the vet said the cat was severely neglected and had to euthanize him."

According to the arrest warrant, the veterinarian called it one of the worst cases of animal neglect he'd seen in many years. He said it didn't happen overnight.

The judge ordered Taylor to have zero contact with her child. She's due back in court next month.