being harassed for stray cats by authorities

[smiger]

Cinnaminson, New Jersey

well, the situation is this. My father has been feeding a few strays for about a year or so. They come and go as they please.we have tried to havethem placed in shelters, but either they were full or didn’t deal with stray cats. This year, a couple of them have had litters, which instead of leaving them out in the inclement weather, we have taken them ito our glassed in back porch. A relative knows someone involved with PetSmart pet stores. We were making arangements to have them taken there for adoption. One of the litters seemed to have an eye infection so we contacted someone involved with volunteering at a cat sanctuary in South Jersey. she arrived and took one of the kittens. Unfortunately, it had o be put down. She was to return for the rest of the litter and never called for arrangements. This Friday, she showed up with a police officer and an associate from Burlington County Animal Abuse. Threatening my 81 year old father and giving him a time limit of 48 hours to trap and deliver the kittens and the homeless cats that are around to this place in Eastampton.
Now please, let me begin by saying, my father is anything other than abusive to these kids !! All he did was feed them and with a pet on the head; they went on thier way. Hardly seen them for days at a time... he is anything but abusive !!!!
now I understand the need for cat control and the growing population, but to threaten an old man who was just keeping them alive to me is quite rediculous.
So to answer your question, there are about 4 adults and a copule groups of kittens, 4 each, that we were taking to PetSmart. I suppose we could call Animal Control, but they would more than likely destroy them. I have to talk to one of the officers today in a phone call to try and extend the time period. Why they are forcing my elderly father to do this is painful. And to make him deliver them about a half an hour away each time he catches one is unbelieveable.
anyway,my question is this. Do these authorities have the right to threaten my father with jail time and a $ 1200.00 fee ??? are they permitted to harrass him in this way ??
Thank you for your time.
Terry Veitenheimer

 

[swalsh411]

I don't get what is so hard to understand here. Your father fed these cats and took them into his home; making them his responsibility. There are laws about this sort of thing. (the number of animals you can have, the condition they can be kept in, etc). If your father is in violation of these laws then hey absolutely can be fined or whatever else the penalty may be.

If your elderly father cannot take care of these cats then he should not be feeding them or allowing them in his house. There is no exception in the animal control laws for "old people who mean well but cannot properly care for the animals".

What are you not understanding here?

 

[Handcoc]

There may be an ordinance against feeding animals (feral/wild animals). Your father should ask under what authority they would charge him under so he can understand his responsibilities as a member of the community (they don't have to point it out); if they give him a law saying that he cannot do what he is doing then he should stop.

Although you may see no harm in his activities, if it is the law then its the law.
Try & change the law if you do not like it.

 

[quincy]

smiger, the State of New Jersey allows communities to decide whether or not to establish "feral cat colonies" in their area and, if established, how they are to be regulated. Your father lives in a county in New Jersey that already has communities with established cat colonies. You or your father should check to see if Cinnaminson has a similar feral cat management program or if the cats must be relocated permanently to another location.

In order for your father to continue to care for the feral cats as he has been doing, should such colonies be allowed in Cinnaminson, the cats must first be trapped and neutered. Only then can they be returned to their outdoor home, to be cared for by community volunteers like your father.

This "managed care" of feral cats serves to keep the cats healthy and helps to control and reduce the cat population, all while preventing the euthanasia of the animals, when Humane Societies and other animal rescue organizations have their facilities filled already with adoptable strays.

I would have your father contact the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, which has jurisdiction over the feral cat population in New Jersey, and have him ask for direction in finding assistance in gathering the cats to have them transported and neutered. The number of NJDHSS is 1-800-367-6543. He can also contact a local Humane Society or a wildlife organization in his area to see if they can help with the trapping and transporting of the cat families.

If Cinnaminson is NOT a community in Burlington that allows for the establishment of cat colonies, you and your dad should find out why, and if (and how) it can become one (this is assuming your father enjoys caring for cats). Some areas do not allow the cat colonies because there are protected wildlife in the area that can become prey for the cats.

Is there an animal shelter in Eastampton? Why must the cats be delivered there? Did your father learn if the cats were going to be returned to his home area after he collected them for transport to Eastampton?

As for the woman from the cat sanctuary arriving at your father's home with a policeman and an associate from the County's Animal Abuse department, she might have overreacted a bit (probably out of concern for the other kittens and cats in the area who may be infected like the one kitten was), and your father's visitors could, perhaps, have been kinder to your 81-year-old father, especially since the cats are not his in the first place.

But, from what you have posted, it does not sound like harassment.

Good luck.

 

[Handcoc]

smiger,

As for the woman from the cat sanctuary arriving at your father's home with a policeman and an associate from the County's Animal Abuse department, she might have overreacted a bit (probably out of concern for the other kittens and cats in the area who may be infected like the one kitten was) and your father's visitors could, perhaps, have been kinder to your 81-year-old father, especially since the cats are not his in the first place.

Most likely because the woman from the cat sanctuary is NUTS ... cats are not an endangered species ... most people who work at these places have screws loose .. No need for cat "sanctuaries" at all.

 

[quincy]

Yup. Cats are hardly an endangered species.

Cat diseases can spread pretty rapidly through a colony of cats, however, and getting a sick cat treated can be important. An unhealthy cat population can lead to an unhealthy human population.