Hoarding - approx 100 animals abandoned
Buttonwillow, CA (US)Incident Date: Saturday, Oct 15, 2005
County: Kern
Disposition: Not Charged
Person of Interest: Joanne Comstock
Kern County Animal Control officers will be trying, daily, to trap a population of cats and rabbits lurking beneath an empty Buttonwillow home.
The home is surrounded by trash, animal feces, a cloud of flies and a terrific stench.
Kern County Animal Control division chief Denise Haynes the animals' owners left them at the property on Stockdale Highway at Wasco Way when they were evicted Oct. 15.
Haynes said she has been in contact with Joanne Comstock, one of the former owners.
The woman told Haynes there are about 15 cats and 12 rabbits on the property. Neighbors had said they thought there might be up to 100 animals there. Animal control officers, Haynes said, saw a number of animals at the home, but most disappeared under the home when a car approached.
Haynes said the animals appear to be in good condition, but a couple of dead cats and rabbits seem to have been killed by a cat fight or by coyotes.
Animal control officers inspected the site on the morning of Nov 2, Haynes said, recovered a couple of cats and set out two traps to collect others.
And Haynes' officers will place more traps on the property, she said.
Animal control will work with the property owner, whom Haynes identified as Norman Shepherd, to help collect the cats and rabbits and take them to the county animal shelter.
It is important to deal with the situation immediately because the animals will breed and cause a larger problem, Haynes said.
One cat captured was pregnant, she said. References« CA State Animal Cruelty Map
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