Hoarding - 91 cats, one child seized
Fort Walton Beach, FL (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Oct 9, 2002
County: Okaloosa
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged:
» Milan Jurkovic
» Cynthia Jurkovic
Milan and Cynthia Jurkovic were arrested on Wednesday when authorities removed an 8-year old girl, 91 cats and one old dog from a filthy home. The child's parents were charged with child neglect. The home was covered in cat feces and reeked of urine. Milan and Cynthia Jurkovic remain in jail.
The officers and PAWS workers had to wear ventilation masks to enter the filthy home.
Police detective Tim Sheldon said, "But I could smell it, and my eyes were burning from the ammonia (of the urine)."
It was stated the cats were all well fed, 91 cats shared four litter boxes.
The cats had overrun and all but destroyed three of the four bedrooms. The child is now in the care of other family members. The child apparently slept in the living room or with her parents.
The police and the Florida Department of Children and Families responded to a complaint about the state of the home several weeks ago and stopped by to visit again. The child welfare agency had left a note demanding access to inspect the home. Cynthia Jurkovic called Wednesday to give them permission to visit the home.
PAWS took the cats. They hope to be able to place many of them in homes. Some of the cats are wild and some have the best personalities you can imagine.
The old dog was seriously ill and had to be euthanized.
Authorities could not determine any reason why the Jurkovics would keep so many cats.
Cynthia Jurkovic was a member of the Fellowship of Isis, an international organization "dedicated to honoring the religion of the Goddess." She apparently also ran a business, Spiral Goddess Creations, that sold ritual ware and was listed in a directory of pagan businesses.
References- Associated Press - Oct 10, 2002
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