SPCA tracks cat hoarder to Gabriola

More cats rescued from Nanaimo-area animal hoarder

Oct 6, 2009: By Jenn Marshall

A woman caught hoarding a large number of cats and kittens twice this year needs medical help and should be banned from owning animals, Nanaimo SPCA says.

Special constables were called to Gabriola Island last week to rescue 23 neglected cats and kittens. In August, SPCA constables removed nearly 100 cats from a house the same woman was renting in Cedar.

In both cases, the property owners invited SPCA officials to the property to remove the animals.

Volunteers with the Gabriola Cats Alive rescue group helped the SPCA catch and cage the animals in the most recent incident..." More

SPCA tracks cat hoarder to Gabriola

After losing up to 100 sick and neglected animals in August, woman is found with pack of animals in filthy bus

Oct 7, 2009: Danielle Bell

Less than two months after she was evicted and threatened with charges for keeping nearly 100 cats in filthy conditions, a Cedar woman has been caught again with a large number of animals at a Gabriola Island property.

Twenty-three cats and kittens are being cared for at the Nanaimo SPCA after officials were called again to rescue neglected animals from the compulsive hoarder, who has since been evicted from the renovated bus trailer where she was living.

The latest animal rescue is putting increased pressure on the Nanaimo shelter, which is dealing with about 50% more cats in 2009 compared to an average year. It also illustrates the difficulty authorities have dealing with compulsive animal hoarders.

On Thursday, B.C. SPCA officials and volunteers with Gabriola Cats Alive spent five hours removing the fearful, flea-infested cats who rescuers said were malnourished and suffering from infections. The cats had crawled into vents and walls inside the garbage-strewn bus, where the smell of feces and urine was overwhelming. The only food provided for them was lettuce left in a rusty pan.

The owner of the property where the unidentified woman was staying called the SPCA when he discovered the situation with the cats.

Cats Alive spokeswoman Jean Wyenberg said Tuesday that the volunteer rescue group was aware the woman had moved to the Island and were monitoring her movements.

"It's pretty horrible. They were little animals that were absolutely terrified," said Wyenberg, who helped remove some cats. "It's just very hard and traumatic all around."

SPCA officials believe at least some of the animals may have come from the Cedar property the woman occupied until August. Ninety-four cats and kittens were removed from a rented home on Lofthouse Road. The cleanup costs are $50,000..." More

More cats rescued from Nanaimo-area animal hoarder

The BC SPCA was called out a second time to rescue neglected cats and kittens from a large-scale animal hoarder.

SPCA special constables were called to Gabriola Island on Oct. 1 to rescue 23 neglected cats and kittens from the same individual who was involved in a troubling hoarding case in Cedar in August in which BC SPCA special constables removed 94 sick and badly-neglected cats. Charges of animal neglect are pending in that case.

“The woman had left Cedar and was living in a renovated bus on a property on Gabriola,” said SPCA Const. Julie Hitchcock in a press release. "The owner of the property was unaware that the woman was keeping cats and when it was discovered he called us to remove them.”

When SPCA officers and volunteers from the rescue group Gabriola Cats Alive arrived they found 23 short-haired domestic cats living in horrific conditions.

“The cats were extremely fearful, malnourished, dehydrated, suffering from upper respiratory infection and eye infections and were infested with fleas,” said Hitchcock. “The smell of feces and urine inside the bus was overwhelming and the only food available to the cats was some wilted romaine lettuce in a rusty pan.”

She adds the bus was filled with dirty clothing and broken household items and the terrified cats had wedged themselves into every possible space, including vents and inside walls.

“This is a very sad case where the woman is an animal hoarder and is not taking necessary steps to relieve the suffering of the animals,” said Hitchcock.

The 23 cats are being cared for at the Nanaimo SPCA shelter..." More

Sept 21, 2009: Nearly 100 hoarded cats removed from filthy home

Nanaimo and Parksville SPCA officials removed nearly 100 cats from a house in Cedar on Monday.

Investigators were shocked when they arrived at the home of a woman who had been previously investigated for hoarding animals.

Cats had overrun the property and had even found their way inside the walls. The floors were thick with animal waste, and dead cats and kittens were being kept in a freezer.

The B.C. SPCA said they were tipped off by bailiffs, who were in the process of evicting the home's unidentified female occupant.

"We only took the most seriously neglected and distressed animals from the property," said SPCA investigator Julie Hitchcock. "There were considerably more animals there."

In total, 94 animals were removed. Many required immediate veterinary care.

"The animals were living in a horrendous hoarding situation," said SPCA investigator Tina Heary.

The amount of urine and feces in the house created a health hazard for humans and animals. "The air quality was so bad we had to keep moving outside the home to get air while seizing the animals," said Heary.

The SPCA is considering animal cruelty and neglect charges against the female occupant. An order will be sought to prohibit her from owning any more animals..." Link