Macomb Co is a suburb of Detroit where about 10% of the population lives below the poverty level. The Macomb Co Animal Shelter in MI has 5 dogs and 6 cats listed on its website – none have photos. They sell dogs for $162 (if they have to neuter) and cats for $94 (if they have to neuter). The shelter’s mission statement reads, in part:
The Animal Shelter has adopted a no-kill philosophy, and will make every effort to promote pet adoptions of healthy, non-aggressive animals by the general public and by approved animal rescue organizations.
I was skeptical after reading that for several reasons. Listing so few animals online and posting no photos at all hardly seems like they are making “every effort to promote pet adoptions”. The high adoption fees are prohibitive to saving lives. There are no stats posted on the website to verify they are saving at least 90% of their animals. Then there’s this report which indicates Macomb Co saved only 27% of its animals in 2010. In 2011, the shelter took in 7337 dogs and cats, killing 5027 of them (a kill rate of approximately 69% for dogs and cats). And the Detroit Free Press reports that things aren’t getting better for cats:
The shelter’s feline euthanasia rate, as reported to the state, has jumped in two years, from 54% for kittens and cats in 2010 to 83% in 2011[.]
So definitely not no kill. Not no way, not no how.
Just as disturbing as the needless killing is the account from a rescuer of how 4 newborn kittens suffered due to negligence on the part of the shelter staff last week. A near term pregnant cat was housed in the same cage with another cat when she gave birth to 4 kittens last Monday. The shelter staff then removed one of the adult cats. The neonate kittens suffered and died because the cat they were left with was not the mama cat. As usual, a local politician has an expluhnashun:
[Assistant County Executive Al] Lorenzo said shelter staff believed they had left the kittens with the right adult, as staffers witnessed the cat cleaning the kittens. He said he was told that the kittens likely died because the mother was stressed.
Oh. Right. After giving birth, the shelter staff took the mama cat away from her babies, leaving them to starve to death. That probably stressed her out. And the NotMama cat tried to help out by licking the kittens so of course any trained animal professional is going to assume that’s the cat who is full of milk and keeping these babies alive, right? Yeah but oops. Anyhoo, it’s all good. No kill and stuff.
There is a petition for the removal of the shelter director here.
Mental Health Break: Video
April 21, 2012
Mental Health Break: Video
March 13, 2012
I watch a lot of the MAS security camera footage at fast speed, in order to save time, slowing it down to normal speed when I see something of interest. I watch the nice cat lady on fast speed since I’m not worried that she may be hurting pets – that’s the farthest thing from my mind! It’s fun to watch the cats on fast speed and I thought you guys might enjoy watching a snippet of the nice cat lady cleaning cages while a couple of cool cats each get a turn to stretch their legs. Optional: Play some Benny Hill music in your mind for added entertainment.
700 Cats Seized from Cat Sanctuary in FL
March 2, 2012
You may have been reading this week about the arrest of Caboodle Ranch owner Craig Grant. Mr. Grant operated a cat sanctuary in FL and was featured in a satirical piece on the Colbert Report about a year ago. You can see the very funny clip, which shows many of the cats and their environment here.
Local law enforcement, working with the ASPCA, have seized all of Mr. Grant’s cats (about 700). Mr. Grant intends to fight the cruelty charges. If he is ultimately acquitted, will the ASPCA give him his 700 cats back?
PETA has posted an “undercover expose” clip on its website about Caboodle. I’m not linking to it but if you are interested, you can Google it. It shows footage, obtained over a period of several months, of sick and suffering cats. The thing I have never trusted about the PETA “undercover expose” videos is that they compile them over months. This bothers me for a couple of reasons. How could any compassionate person watch a pet suffer for months – if that’s what’s happening – in order to document cruelty? Furthermore, if you stay at any sanctuary for an extended period, you are bound to see all sorts of things crop up and there is no way for viewers to know context once PETA has edited down months of footage to 5 minutes. For example, the place may take in one sick/malnourished/whatever cat a month and if you film for six months – BOOM, you’ve got 6 cats in bad shape for your video and you don’t have to disclose that they came in that way. Also it’s PETA so…
What are your thoughts on this case?
Snipped from a current PETA e-mail asking for money:
PETA cares so much about the research lab cat in this e-mail, they gave him a name – Tiger. They mention how he probably liked to get scratched behind the ears and went into happy mode at mealtimes. And they condemn the research facility who killed him and claim that “more than half of the cats” were killed at the facility in recent years. Oh and money – send money.
Setting aside the issue of research animals for the moment, I want to draw attention to PETA’s annual report to the state of VA for 2011. PETA took in 1214 cats last year – 8 were transferred to other facilities, 5 were adopted, 2 were redeemed by owners and 1198 were killed. PETA killed 99% of the cats in its care in 2011. That’s “more than half”, in case your irony meter just exploded.
The money grubbing e-mail from PETA ends like this:
PETA is proud that we were able to save other cats from this agony at U-M. But we need to end the entire system of abuse there and at other universities and medical schools nationwide. Make a donation today to support our work to end the suffering of animals in laboratories!
Let’s be clear. PETA does not “save other cats”. PETA kills nearly every single cat they get their bloody hands on. The cats PETA kills probably enjoyed getting ear scritches and got happy when a bowl of food was put out for them, just like Tiger. But unlike Tiger, the cats who end up at PETA’s facility do not have a 50% chance of making it out alive. In fact, they have almost no chance since PETA kills 99% of the cats they receive.
If you want your money to be spent on actually saving cats’ lives, donate wisely.
Trying to find out if these CA shelter cats need veterinary care
February 7, 2012
Reader mikken noticed these two cats at the Sutter Co pound in CA. They both look like they may need urgent veterinary care.
Male cat #A095209 at the Sutter Co pound as pictured on PetHarbor.com.
14 year old female cat #A095385 at the Sutter Co pound as pictured on PetHarbor.com.
Can anyone in the area call the pound and ask about these two cats?
Sutter Co Animal Control
102 Second Street
Yuba City, CA 95991
(530) 822-7375
If Not for Cats We’d Be Covered in Rats
February 5, 2012
This interesting article suggests that if every cat in the world suddenly died, humans would be in serious trouble – and not just because we’d miss their delightful viral videos.
By killing mice and rats in barns and grain storage areas, cats are vital for keeping those pests in check.
Rodents eat and contaminate grain stored for human consumption. Without cats to control their population, rodents might significantly impact our usable supply of grains. Furthermore, with a dramatic increase in the global rodent population, we would likely see a decline in the number of seabirds since rodents eat their eggs. Species who prey upon rats would probably grow in numbers. The effects would ripple across the globe.
But don’t worry. I just checked Petfinder to see how many cats are available for adoption within 500 miles of me and there are 40, 028. Global meltdown averted.
Mental Health Break: Wikipedia
October 23, 2011
Wikipedia has a good entry on the tradition of the ship’s cat. While their services were mainly needed for rodent control, they provided comfort to the crew as well:
Cats have a high ability to adapt to new surroundings, and were therefore highly suitable for service on a ship. They also offered companionship and a sense of home and security to sailors who could be away from home for long periods, especially in times of war.
The page includes several photos, including this one (caption by Wikipedia):
Prime Minister Winston Churchill encounters a ship's cat. He restrains Blackie, the mascot of HMS Prince of Wales, from joining an American destroyer, while the ship's company stand to attention during the playing of the National Anthem.
Mass Cat Adoption Event in North Central Florida Starts Friday
August 22, 2011
Dr. Cate Mcmanus snuggling with Possum, the blind FeLV+ cat she is adopting from the case.
In June, approximately 550 cats were taken from an owner in Florida. They were cared for and vetted and are now available for adoption. This massive undertaking is being coordinated by a number of animal welfare groups including Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Program, HSUS, Alachua Co Animal Services and PetSmart Charities. Let’s help get eyeballs on this mass adoption event in Gainesville, FL because this is what we want to happen for rescued pets - to be cared for and adopted out to the public. More like this, please.
Operation Catnip’s executive director Shaye Olmstead volunteered during the veterinary triage examinations when the cats were first seized.
Thirty University of FL vet students and veterinarians teamed up to spay and neuter more than 300 of the rescued cats last week.
When: Friday through Sunday, August 25 – 27, 10am – 6pm
Where: Alachua Co Humane Society (with transportation provided to offsite adoption location)
Who: Any and all cat lovers who can get there
Bring: ID, cash, cat carrier
How much: $5 adoption fee per cat, 2 cats per household
What you get for your $5:
- Cats have been neutered, vax’d, FeLV/FIV tested, dewormed, de-flea’d and come with vet records.
- There will be people to help match adopters with cats so tell them what you are looking for in a feline friend.
- Whisker kisses for life.
Cat for adoption.
Photos and captions provided by Dr. Julie Levy, who has been helping to care for these cats all summer.
SC Cat Sanctuary Raided
March 4, 2011
There are new developments in a story I’ve been following here in SC. PETA sent an undercover investigator to work 5 days a week for 6 months at an Horry Co cat sanctuary. PETA then released a compilation video made during the undercover investigator’s time at the sanctuary and stated the cats were living “in squalor and consistent deprivation of everything that is natural to them”. They wanted the county to bring cruelty charges against the sanctuary owner.
Prosecutors on the case countered that inspections made by ACOs which included a vet and an assistant prosecutor revealed no “unbelievable atrocities”. In fact, the assistant prosecutor “said he personally looked at each of the more than 300 animals living in tiered crates inside the shelter and saw no evidence of abuse or neglect – or the filthy, cramped conditions PETA alleges”.
The owner had been charged with improper care of animals last September when PETA had approached authorities about the sanctuary.
After PETA went public with their video and allegations last month, a judge issued an order to seize the cats and Horry Co authorities removed 237 cats and 1 dog from the sanctuary owner this week. The numbers break down as follows:
- 107 cats killed
- 101 cats being treated for medical problems by the county
- 29 cats returned to the sanctuary owner
- 1 dog returned to sanctuary owner
Regarding the 107 cats who were killed:
The county said the 107 cats euthanized by a licensed veterinarian was suffering from multiple medical conditions including severe infestation of herpes and ringworm, anal maggots, severe gum disease and missing teeth, tumors/lesions, multiple abdominal abscesses, seizures and cracked and bloody pads on their feet.
I am having trouble reconciling the assistant prosecutor, a vet, and some ACOs finding no evidence of neglect while personally examining 300 cats with the words “anal maggots”. I can see perhaps missing gum disease on some cats and even possibly abscesses and bloody feet (although I wouldn’t think the vet performed a very thorough exam if these things were missed on most or all of the affected cats), but the idea that animal professionals specifically investigating claims of neglect and lack of medical care are going to miss anal maggots seems unlikely to me. I didn’t see the abscesses or maggots in the PETA video either.
All this leaves me wondering where exactly the truth lies in this case. On the one hand, this woman allegedly allowed cats in her care to suffer and literally rot in cages. On the other hand, she is apparently a good enough owner to pass a vet inspection and get 31 pets back. What do you think?
