Hoarding - 123 cats seized, 13 found dead
Boise, ID (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Jun 22, 2005
County: Ada
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Gale Jean McVay
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
A woman faces possible criminal charges after 123 cats were taken from her home by authorities, many in "deplorable" condition, an Idaho Humane Society spokeswoman said.
Acting on an Ada County Sheriff's warrant June 22, animal control officers raided Gale McVay's home and cat sanctuary just south of the city limits after neighbors filed a formal complaint noting a foul odor coming from the house, Humane Society spokeswoman Dee Fugit said. Officers found 123 cats in various stages of neglect and a house covered with urine and feces. A cat corpse was decomposing under a sofa; 12 more dead cats were found in a freezer and refrigerator, Fugit said.
McVay was in a local hospital for surgery when the cats were taken from her home, but was released Junhe 23.
About 18 of the confiscated cats, most ill and feral, had been euthanized by the evening of June 23, Fugit said. The fate of the other cats has not been determined yet.
Fugit said it appears McVay, who doggedly trapped feral cats in her neighborhood and had them spayed and neutered, was "hoarding" cats she said she would release.
Some of the cats found were too weak to stand, and many appear to have parasites, mouth ulcers and upper respiratory infections, she said.
The cats cannot be put up for adoption until McVay or a court gives custody of the animals to the Humane Society, Fugit said.
Bigelow said she was "distressed" by the timing of the raid. "She was in the hospital, and I didn't think it was the right time," she said.
Fugit said the Humane Society had an inkling for a while that there was something amiss in McVay's home, but that McVay refused to let officers inspect it. Boise limits residents to four cats under one roof, but Ada County has no limit on the number of cats per household.
"It's bad for her to have to live in that, too," Fugit said. "We're concerned not only for the animals but for her, too."
Fugit said the Humane Society plans to charge McVay with charges of animal cruelty and animal neglect, both misdemeanors.
Case UpdatesThe woman accused of keeping more than 100 cats at her home in fetid conditions was defiant Friday, saying she would continue caring for cats despite facing possible jail time if convicted of animal cruelty and neglect charges.
Gale McVay, 59, said she did nothing wrong in taking care of her cats and blasted the "heavy handed" tactics of authorities, who confiscated the cats from her home while she was at a hospital recuperating from back surgery.
"I'm outraged," she said. "They're my life, I love my cats. I've done the very best for them."
Animal control officers raided McVay's house Wednesday, finding 123 cats, many gravely ill and barely able to stand, in a home covered in feces and urine, Idaho Humane Society spokeswoman Dee Fugit said. One decomposing cat corpse was found under a sofa and 12 more were found in a freezer. The Humane Society has so far euthanized 18 of McVay's cats who were ill, feral or both. Fugit said the stench in McVay's home was so strong officers had to use respirators when searching it.
Fugit said McVay meets the classic description of an "animal hoarder" and that, while intending the best for her cats, McVay is "loving them to death."
"She thinks she's saving them, but she's not saving them, she's killing them," Fugit said. "One person cannot take care of that many cats. Nobody can."
McVay is a long-time cat advocate who acquaintances say works tirelessly to trap feral cats for spaying and neutering. For years she has run a sanctuary for stray cats on her one-acre Beverly Street property just south of Boise.
She disputes much of the Humane Society's characterization of her and her home, and said she knew nothing of a dead cat under her sofa. She said she didn't recall any of her cats being so weakened they couldn't stand and, while she acknowledged she had a flea problem in some of her cats, she said her house is sanitary.
"To me that's just ridiculous ... I got a really good smeller and I don't like the smell of pee and poop," McVay said.
McVay said she was angry about the "heavy-handed" tactics of authorities, who confiscated her cats while she was recuperating from back surgery at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center. About the dead cats in her freezer, she said they were awaiting necropsy - she tries to find out the cause of death for all of her cats before burying them on her property.
"I love them all so much and I want to know what happened and I want to know if I can prevent it (in the future)," she said.
Barbara Babbitt, who said she's known McVay for nearly 40 years, said McVay is devoted to her animals. "Her heart is so good and she's so honest," she said.
Babbitt acknowledged McVay may have had trouble caring for so many cats. But she called the Humane Society's description of the conditions in McVay's house "exaggerated." Though, she said, she has not been inside McVay's house for years.
"I know things probably weren't properly ... taken care of, but that's because she wasn't feeling well," Babbitt said.
None of the remaining cats can be adopted until either McVay or a court gives custody to the Humane Society, Fugit said.
McVay said she won't give up her cats."I'm not turning over my cats to them," she said. "I'm going to fight for them."
McVay faces counts of animal cruelty and animal neglect for each of the 123 cats taken from her home, with each charge bringing up to six months in prison and a $5,000 fine for a first conviction, said Susan Clark of the Humane Society. McVay may also be billed for any costs incurred by the Humane Society in caring for her cats. | Source: Idaho Statesman - June 25, 2005
Update posted on Jun 27, 2005 - 9:25PM |
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