Hoarding - 59 cats seized - Newport News, VA

Tuesday, Mar 14, 2006

County: Newport News City

Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: William Thomas Byrum

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

A Newport News man faces animal cruelty charges and could spend up to a year in jail after Animal Services officers removed 59 cats from his garage.

Six Animal Services officers wearing protective suits and respirator masks spent nearly eight hours on March 14 removing the distressed and ill animals from the garage at 615 Woodfin Road.

The animals' owner, Thomas Byrum, was issued four misdemeanor summonses: one count of cruelty to animals, one count of failure to perform the duties of an owner, one count of failure to vaccinate against rabies, and one count of failure to license.

Animal Services Superintendent Mark Kumpf said the owner thought he had between 12 and 18 cats in his garage.

"He did try to provide for them, but it would appear there were more animals then he could care for," Kumpf said.

The garage was poorly ventilated, and the 59 cats shared just three litter boxes. Kumpf said the smell was so strong that the officers had to stand outside every 15 minutes.

With the start of spring mating season, the number of animals had the potential to go from 59 to 200 in a short time, he said.

The cats included some newborn kittens, and all were in various states of illness and distress, officials said.

They were taken to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, where some were quarantined. Others were euthanized.

Kumpf said Byrum was very cooperative. Kumpf described him as an animal hoarder.

"There's a lot less social stigma on hoarders because they tend to really love their animals," he said. "Sometimes the judge will order psychological counseling for these people."

In December and June of last year, 12 sick animals were removed from the same property by Animal Services.

Case Updates

Only one of the cats was adoptable. The others were euthanized, because the deplorable conditions they had lived in made them unadoptable. The one cat that is adoptable is in quarantine at the Peninsula SPCA. The cat is being qurantined for rabies, because she bit one of the animal control officers.

Source: WAVY - March 17, ,2006 Update posted on Mar 18, 2006 - 2:47PM

References

• Daily Press - March 16, 2006
• WAVY - March 17, 2006

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