County Rescues 24 Cats from Van

By Rebecca Nolan

A Eugene man was put on a kind of pet probation after animal control officers found 24 cats living in his van this week. With the owner's permission, all of the cats were taken to the Lane County Animal Regulatory Authority's shelter in west Eugene, said Mike Wellington, program coordinator for the animal control agency. Four will be returned to the owner, who is cooperating with authorities, Wellington said. The remaining 20 will be held for observation and evaluation. Those deemed adoptable will be available to the public on Tuesday. The others will be euthanized. A passer-by called the agency Wednesday morning after noticing the cat-filled van parked on West Seventh Avenue. "You could see all the cats in the windows," Wellington said. "Feces and urine just caked the inside of the van. You could smell it from about 8 feet away." The owner and his wife live in the green GMC van with the cats, he said. The cats appeared to be well fed, but the number of animals overwhelmed the two litter boxes officers found inside. Many of the cats' coats were soaked in urine.

The agency has been dealing with the owner for about three years, Wellington said. Last year, he was caught with 25 cats living in the same van. He found homes for 17 of those animals, but was allowed to keep eight others, Wellington said. At the time, the animal control agency was monitoring the owner and providing food for the cats as long as he followed agency guidelines. But officers lost track of him when he left town, Wellington said.

Unlike dogs, which must be licensed, cats are unregulated animals. In Lane County, no laws govern how many cats a person can have or the living conditions an owner must provide. As a result, authorities can only intervene when a situation devolves into criminal animal neglect or cruelty. The animal shelter will spend more than $160 for each cat it immunizes and spays or neuters, Wellington said. In Wednesday's case, the man was charged with one count of misdemeanor animal neglect. He is likely to avoid serious penalties because he is cooperating with authorities, Wellington said. "He understood what the problems are," he said, adding that people who collect animals often think they are doing good. "It's not an intentional criminal act in our eyes."The owner has agreed to limit to four the number of cats living in the van, to keep the van reasonably clean, and to refrain from collecting any additional strays, Wellington said.

Retail Notebook by The Register-Guard Eugene, Oregon

April 5, 2002, pg. 1 Copyright 2002 The Register-Guard. All right reserved.

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