In late 2009, Kitty City was contacted by a woman named Norma concerned about what she described as, “a hoarding case with about 30 cats and dogs in a trailer in La Luz.”
Norma explained that she’d been helping the owner by taking several cats who lived on the outside of the property (additional to the 30 inside pets) for spay-neuter surgeries and for rabies shots. However, Norma was never allowed inside the home and over several months became more and more concerned about the strong odor and potential harm to those 30 or so pets she was not allowed to see, who were living inside the small trailer.
Norma told Ed Denton director of Kitty City, that, according to the owner’s roommate, not even her family had been allowed inside for many years. She gave the address of the trailer to Ed and asked him to drive by. Although Kitty City — a humane cat adoption center that houses up to 100 adoptable house-cats at a time — was full, Ed agreed to take a look.
The outside of the property did in fact emanate a strong odor of urine and feces from the street. An enormous amount of debris was strewn about the exterior of the property. The trailer itself looked to be in substandard condition.
Ed reported back to Norma that he had driven by and taken photos, and that if she could arrange for an inspection of the inside to assess the animals and condition, Kitty City would help when space became available.
However, the owner was not willing to allow anyone inside, and the roommate, who said he was tired of living in filthy conditions, was willing to make an appointment.
On Jan. 22, Kitty City volunteers were allowed in to assess and video-tape the conditions the animals were living in, inside the trailer.
From exclusive footage from inside the trailer where more than 30 pets lived.
Another frame from exclusive footage taken inside the trailer in La Luz where more than 30 animals lived
While it would be difficult to adequately describe the conditions Kitty City volunteers and “Where the Fur Flies” producer Sunny Aris found inside the home, the video on this page can do so somewhat. Shot in very low-light conditions, and while attempting to avoid stepping on debris and feces, it was impossible to shoot steadily, while also avoiding animals running everywhere in the trailer.
The roommate told volunteers that previously a kitten had been killed inside the trailer by a rattlesnake. He also said that a cat named “Bandit” had died in the trailer recently.
The day after the Kitty City crew was allowed inside, another cat, “Winston,” also died without veterinary treatment sought.
"Winston" was unable to eat and died without veterinary help the day before Kitty City was allowed to remove the animals from trailer.
Two days after this footage was taped, the owner of the trailer agreed to meet with Kitty City and Aris.
The owner said she needed to, “get rid of a few cats,” but that she was “keeping about 10.”
When asked if she was providing a good home for the animals, she said emphatically that she was. She admitted that she had 27 cats and two dogs inside the trailer, and about 15 outside.
She was asked again if the animals were in clean living conditions, given veterinary care when needed, and up to date on shots. She said that not all had been given rabies shots or been spayed or neutered — but said again that they were living in clean conditions and in good health.
The owner of the trailer was then shown the tape. The symptoms of several of the cats were pointed out to her and she agreed that even the cat who had died the day before had not been to the vet to save his life. She explained that this was because she was saving money, as her roommate was moving out.
She agreed to allow Kitty City to remove all animals from her home on the following Monday, Jan. 26, to be brought for quarantine and assessment at Dr. Becky Washburn’s veterinary clinic in Capitan.
Kitty City volunteer removes last of cats from hoarding case in La Luz.
While a happy ending is always hoped for in hoarding cases, the truth is that most have been subject to such poor living conditions that most are euthanized. When the Kitty City volunteers showed up (accompanied by Aris) one dog, who the owner said was named, “Lay Down,” lay dead in a filthy pen outside the trailer. The dog’s sister and pen-mate, “Shut Up,” was guarding the body and in obvious distress. The owner said the dog had died overnight.
The cats with the most serious symptoms were all tested for F.I.P., feline leukemia and feline distemper. When all eight tested came back with positive results for F.I.P., they had to be euthanized to stop their suffering.
F.I.P., feline infectious peratinitis, is fatal 99.9 percent of the time, but only occurs statistically in one out of five thousand cats. Washburn felt that this was significant as to the living conditions to which they had been subjected.
All the cats had then to be tested, to be responsibly and safely adopted. The autopsy on “Lay Down,” the little dog who was found dead, showed that she had died of advanced heart-worm infestation. Her sister, “Shut Up,” was also heart-worm positive, and is now under-going weekly heart-worm treatments while in foster care.
A miniature pinscher found in the home was also positive, (but with lower titers), and was placed into a loving home and is now undergoing heart-worm treatment with a positive prognosis.
A little pug-chihuahua mix found inside the home was the only dog not positive for heart-worm, was spayed and vaccinated after testing, and has now been adopted into a loving home.
The surviving cats have all been spayed or neutered, vaccinated and tested negative for disease. Some senior cats like “Zebra,” a feisty 13-year old marbled tabby, had to have most of their teeth removed due to dental infections and rot. All cats from this case are now in loving foster homes awaiting adoption.
"Zebra" is a feisty senior who needed all but two teeth removed - doing great in foster care and waiting for a new home.
Kitty City director Ed Denton urged those who know of animals who are being kept in life-endangering conditions to do what Norma, the “Good Samaritan” who worked tirelessly to help these pets, did. Alert someone!
If local authorities cannot help, the Attorney General’s Hotline Against Cruelty to Animals is available, and information can be given anonymously, at 1-877-5-HUMANE.
Without the caring shown by one concerned citizen in this case, this could have been an even worse situation. Adult Protective Services was called and is helping the owner clean the home for her safety. Code Enforcement of Otero County inspected the exterior of the property. According to the owner, the Salvation Army is helping with removal of the debris outside the property.
Terribly underweight, "Garfield" is now under veterinary's care.
Emma is a 'rumpy riser' meaning a stub-tail. She survived and is healthy, spayed, vaccinated and in foster care while waiting for a new home.
All information collected by Kitty City and Aris has been turned over to the district attorney of Otero County.
Kitty City will be hosting a huge adoptathon called “Victims No More,” to find loving indoor homes for these and other cats from recent hoarding and neglect cases in Lincoln and Otero Counties. The event will be held at the White Sands Mall in Alamogordo, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m., and the public is invited.
Kitty City hopes to find homes for all the cats, who have all been spayed or neutered, tested and vaccinated. They have also been assessed in foster care and the foster parents will be on hand to “introduce the purrsonalities” of each triumphant and loving feline survivor. More information about the adoptable cats is available by telephoning 575-257-2555.
The veterinary bills to test and help the cats have run into several thousand dollars, and Kitty City expresses much gratitude for tax-deductible donations to be made by the public. Donations can be made securely online, at www.kittycitynm.com or by mailing a check to Kato Foundation/Kitty City, 56 Danley Ranch Road, La Luz, N.M. 88310. The telephone number for Kitty City is 575-430-6013.