Pet hoarding in the Twin Cities a growing problem

By Emily Kaiser

Molly grew up in the home of an animal hoarder. When she was six years old, she watched her mother's love for dogs spiral out of control. Each dog she added to the home was another she didn't have the means to care for.

"She loved her dogs more than me," says Molly, who asked that she remain anonymous. "She let her alcoholism get in the way of taking care of her dogs. I got so frustrated that I didn't want to deal with it anymore."

Last year, Molly called the Animal Humane Society to report her 47-year-old mom. When authorities entered the Anoka County residence in June 2009, many of the 20 dogs had disappeared from the property. What they did find was no less than horrifying.

The floors were slathered in feces and urine. There was a female bulldog in an unventilated kennel that was having trouble breathing. It was unable to stand or walk. By the time it arrived at the veterinary clinic for care, the bulldog was already dead.

Three of the other dogs tested positive for parasites. Others had respiratory, ear, and eye infections that were treatable with routine veterinary care.

The owner was charged with one gross misdemeanor and six misdemeanors for the neglect..." More

The cats left behind

by Anthony Skeens

Volunteers responding to a “cat hoarding” call caught the stench of feces and the sight of a feline corpse being eaten upon arrival at the north Crescent City residence.

Lynette Marker, 48, had died June 2 from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage, leaving dozens of animals stranded and starving at her home on West Jefferson Road north of Washington Boulevard.

There are differing estimates of the number of pets found at the residence.

Cheryl Wilson, President of Humane Society of Del Norte, said there were at least 100 cats and two dogs at the residence, while a report from the Sheriff’s Office tallied 40 cats and two dogs.

Whatever the count, the Humane Society lacks sufficient resources to handle the situation, she said..." More

Final count of dogs rescued is 108

The Missouri Humane Society puts the final count for dogs rescued from a puppy mill in rural Miller County at 108.

Police have not released any information about who was running the breeding facility in Tuscumbia.

No one has been arrested nor charged.

Rescuers said the dogs were covered in feces and lived in dirty, overcrowded pens that lacked ventilation.

The Humane Society said the breeder is licensed by the USDA and had been warned to improve conditions in the past eight months.

More than 100 small-breed dogs have been removed from a central-Missouri breeding facility, where rescuers said the animals were living in filthy conditions.

The Humane Society of Missouri, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Miller County Sheriff's Department removed the dogs on Monday. The dogs were taken to the Humane Society headquarters in St. Louis for care.

Rescuers said the dogs lacked adequate veterinary care, were covered in feces and lived in dirty, overcrowded pens that lacked ventilation.

The breeds included poodles, beagles, and other smaller breeds..." More

No arrests were made. The Humane Society said the breeder is licensed by the state and the USDA, but has been warned over the past eight months to improve conditions.

Woman lived in room damaged by cat urine

by Mark Slavit

Boone County Animal Control Officers served a warrant and several summons to a woman for hoarding at least 25 cats in a Columbia motel room.

Authorities said the woman also put dead cats in the motel room’s freezer because she did not want to part with her pets, which is typical behavior of a hoarder.

The cats were taken from the Motel 6 on I-70 Drive Southeast to the Central Missouri Humane Society.

Cat urine and feces severely damaged the woman’s motel room. Animal Control Officers said they knew the woman was living with the cats in the motel room because of previous complaints over a period of several months.

The woman has not been arrested because authorities continue to gather evidence.

“I did issue her summonses there on the spot," Animal Control Officer Molly Sust said. "We’re currently waiting to find out rabies vaccinations and talk to her further. She is out. She did leave on her own. Whether she returns to the motel later, I don’t know.”.." More

Joelle Kott, Pitstop Puppy's Dog Rescue & Boarding Kennel - Buffalo, New York

Jun 14, 2010: Woman faces charges of animal torture

• 
  
• by: Eli George

After a lengthy and detailed joint investigation involving the Niagara County Sheriff's Office, the Niagara County District Attorney's Office and the Niagara County SPCA, which included Veterinary Medical/Forensic personnel, Joelle R. Kott, was arrested on June 10, 2010 for 6 counts of violating the Agricultural and Marketing Law (Section 353 -Overdriving, torturing and injuring animals / failure to provided proper sustenance).

These charges are in connection to a complaint filed on January 29, 2010 in which it was alleged that Ms. Kott was inappropriately housing numerous dogs, at two separate locations in the Town of Wheatfield . On that same date Ms. Kott was charged with two counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Ms. Kott will appear at the Town of Wheatfield Court to answer all of the above charges at a future date..." More

Jun 14, 2010: Facebook Page with updates and petition information

Description of group: Bringing to light a current situation in the Buffalo/Niagara area in NY.

Joelle R. Kott, owner of PitStop Puppy's Dog Rescue was raided on 01/29/2010 and 60+ dogs were seized total. Dogs were take from both her home and her kennels on suspicion of cruelty and neglect. The Niagara SPCA had promised not to euthanize the dogs. This is no longer the case with new directorship.

Though she has been charged for endangering her children and they have been removed from the home as well, the County of Niagara has NOT yet brought animal abuse/neglect/cruelty charges against Ms. Kott. Until we can be assured these dogs will be given every chance possible and charges are filed, we will be a voice for those who can not speak for themselves.

Please take the time to review the information under recent news. Please join us in being guardian angels for these dogs, keeping vigil over this situation to assure the promises made to them and us are kept. To each group member here, these are "our dogs", and we demand justice is served...." Facebook page link

Facebook photos

Video of conditions

Feb 16, 2010: Dog rescue may not have been able to care for so many animals

By Neale Gulley

Animal cruelty charges have not yet been filed against a Wheatfield animal rescuer who was arrested last month for child endangerment after 24 dogs in and around her home were found living in proximity to two children.

All but six of the dogs were seized for their own welfare and one was found dead. Another 22 animals were taken from Pitstop Puppys, the rented former kennel at 3049 Niagara Falls Blvd. run by Joelle Kott of Norman Road since 2004.

Niagara County Sheriff’s Captain Bruce Elliott said Monday that results of SPCA veterinarians’ examination of the animals are still pending. The report may or may not result in additional charges of neglect. SPCA personnel had documented freezing conditions at the facility along with a reported lack of food and water at both locations.

In the meantime, however, an initial report of the charges against Kott has piqued the interest of a psychologist with the ASPCA used to testify about the human/animal relationship in similar criminal cases and before animal rights organizations worldwide.

Dr. Randall Lockwood, senior vice president of the ASPCA’s forensic sciences and anti-cruelty projects said whether the distinction is one of animal cruelty, abuse or animal hoarding, the animals are the ones that suffer.

The “hoarding” concept is nothing new, he explained, but more importantly it helps explain a recent rise nationwide in cases involving shelters shut down for neglecting animals they can’t properly care for..." More

Feb 1, 2010: 47 dogs seized from alleged ‘hoarder’

By Denise Jewell Gee

Joelle R. Kott thought she was helping dozens of dogs she had taken in at Pitstop Puppy’s Dog Rescue and Boarding Kennel on Niagara Falls Boulevard, but Niagara County SPCA officials on Friday said the rescue operation grew beyond her ability to care for the animals.

Twenty-one dogs taken from the unheated kennel at 3049 Niagara Falls Blvd. on Friday were found in 30-degree temperatures with “bone dry” water bowls and living in their own waste, said Kari McAlee, an SPCA veterinary technician.

SPCA workers and deputies from the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office also took 18 dogs and puppies from Kott’s Norman Road home after determining the conditions were “deplorable” for the dogs and two children in the house.

“I think she meant well, but now it just got out of hand,” McAlee said. “She has just too many. You can’t keep track, and you can’t take care of that many, even with the volunteers and help. It’s just too much for one person and one house.”

Officials also took eight puppies they believe belonged to Kott from a nearby farm, said SPCA President Brandy Scrufari.

McAlee described Kott as an animal “hoarder,” unable to say no when she ran out of room and resources to care for pit bulls and other dogs dropped off by other people..." More

Differences Between Animal Rescuing and Pet Hoarding

By Priscella King

This article was written partly in response to another AC article on pet hoarding, in which my friend Juniper raised the question of whether readers think I'm a pet hoarder. I am, after all, living in an old house in the Blue Ridge Mountains with a lot of cats. I commented that the main difference between me and a pet hoarder is that I'm not old enough to have Alzheimer's Disease. Then I signed off for the night.

Then I woke up thinking that these comments may have passed too lightly over a real concern for somebody out there. If a 70-year-old chooses to share her or his home with ten or fifteen cats, is that behavior a healthy, public-spirited animal rescue project, or the early stages of a senile, demented condition that will harm the human, the cats, and the neighborhood affected? How can you tell ("you" being either the 70-year-old or a concerned relative), and what can you do?

During the past 25 years, I've supported my writing habit with a wide variety of skilled and unskilled odd jobs. Most long-term clients have been elderly or disabled or both. I've had a lot of opportunities to observe the aging process, even been certified as a Geriatric Nursing Assistant. Based on this experience, here are ten suggestions for those who may be concerned about "crazy cat lady syndrome." (There are also crazy dog people, crazy pigeon ladies, crazy squirrel or wildlife lovers...it seems to be the same general pattern.)..." More

PA man busted for wild animal hoarding

by Amy Worden

Too often we hear stories about individuals who hoard cats and dogs. Now comes a case in northeastern Pennsylvania of wild animal hoarding.

Stephen Andrew Moore, 46, of Tannersville, Monroe County, pleaded guilty to what the Pennsylvania Game Commission called an unusual form of poaching: possession of wildlife illegally taken from the wild for “a hobby that got out of control."

On Thursday Moore pled guilty to 30 counts of illegal possession of various species ranging from blue jays to raccoons, from chipping sparrows to gray squirrels, from groundhogs to purple finches, according to the game commission As part of the plea agreement, charges against Moore for cruelty to animals were withdrawn. A judge ordered Moore to pay $2,250 in fines, and $750 in reimbursement to the Pocono Wildlife Rehabilitation Center for expenses incurred treating the wildlife that survived.

In May, game officers followed up on a tip and went to Moore’s home in Pocono Township to investigate alleged illegal possession of birds.

“When we arrived, we saw several cages and multiple bird traps on the front porch,”Officer Scott Malicky said. “Also visible from the front porch were several bird traps in the backyard.”

The following day, officers returned to the home with a search warrant and they found dozens of animals in poor health, living in filthy cages. A search of the residence resulted in the seizure of 13 goldfinches; 11 pine siskins (like the one pictured above); 7 house finches; 5 dark-eyed juncos; 4 purple finches; 3 blue jays; 3 gray squirrels; 2 groundhogs; 2 raccoons; 2 indigo buntings; 1 chipping sparrow; 2 black-capped chickadees; 2 rose-breasted grosbeaks; 1 cardinal; 1 brown-headed cowbird; 1 house sparrow; 1 mourning dove; and five others needing identification due to decomposition..." More