By CYNDY COLE, Sun Staff
ARIZONA - Officials removed 19 cats from a Doney Park woman's property Thursday following an anonymous tip that the cats were not well.The owner had more than 30 cats in all, but some had died.
The 19 cats living outdoors had food, water and a barn to live in, but were very ill with very contagious upper-respiratory infections. Some were feral.
The 19 cats living outdoors had food, water and a barn to live in, but were very ill with very contagious upper-respiratory infections. Some were feral.
All were euthanized at Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals, with some barely able to breathe and unable to eat due to lasting sores and internal damage from their infections."The woman was keeping some very ill cats and she couldn't afford to take them to a veterinarian," said Charlotte Peterson, of the Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals.
The owner faced a choice of being charged with animal cruelty or turning over the animals to authorities.She surrendered the animals and left the premises.
Another seven cats living in the owner's home had been spayed and neutered. The woman was allowed to keep those cats pending a visit to the vet Thursday.The owner was hoarding animals because she believed that that she was helping them. She had also received some from neighbors, who saw her as a drop-off point, Peterson said... More
Rick Wacha/Arizona Daily Sun
