Hoarding - over 50 cats Arroyo Grande, CA (US) Incident Date: Tuesday, Jan 8, 2002 County: San Luis Obispo Local Map: available Disposition: Convicted Case Images: 3 files available Abuser/Suspect: Heidi Carpentier

Case ID: 916 Classification: Hoarding Animal: cat View more cases in CA (US) Suspect was in animal welfare field Login to Watch this Case

The ARC, run by organization President Heidi Carpentier and her family, was a storefront adoption and rescue center used to help needy cats. Cats were also stored off site at a place called "The Club," a 20-foot by 48-foot fenced-off piece of rented land with sheds located at 1201 Old Oak Park Road.

The ARC recently closed under a shroud of controversy. The Carpentiers hired a crew to clean the facility, removing the carpet, cat litter boxes and waste from the storefront operation.

About a dozen former volunteers who worked for ARC contacted the District Attorney's Office, the County Division of Animal Services, Sheriff Patrick Hedges, 4th District Supervisor Katcho Achadjian and David Crockett, Arroyo Grande's code enforcement officer, about the less-than-favorable conditions that existed at the center and at The Club.

Statements obtained by the Times-Press-Recorder from volunteers document chronic instances of neglect of the cats that were housed at the facilities.

Among the complaints are sick cats that did not receive proper medication, cats stored in cages for eight years, disappearing cats, overcrowded conditions, improper nourishment and falsified documentation of medical care.

After hearing complaints about the ARC from volunteers in January, Kayce Daniels, the animal care director for the North County Humane Society, came down to check out the center.

In a letter addressed to Hedges and Nick Marquart, chief deputy, Daniels described a visit she and an assistant made to the ARC storefront Jan. 8.

"Upon entering, we were overcome by the odor of cat urine and feces. ...The condition of this so called "shelter' was deplorable," the letter states. "The cats had no drinking water and the litter boxes were so full that the cats were urinating and defecating on the floor. Cat feces was inches deep in the corners of the room and behind the cat cages."

Daniels rescued 11 cats from the facility immediately and came back for more. She took the cats to Dr. Robert Schechter's Atascadero Pet Center for emergency care.

"Most of the cats showed severe signs of ringworm, upper respiratory infections, fleas and worms," Daniels said.

Among the worst cases that Schechter noted:

Two cats had temperatures of 105.8. Upper respiratory infections had been untreated for so long they progressed into pneumonia.

One cat had severe diarrhea and was emaciated, and her hindquarters were burned from not being kept clean for so long. She had a high fever and was leukemia-positive. "It should be noted, also, that this cat was housed with other cats who were presumably leukemia-negative, which should never be done, according to shelter protocol, because of the contagion," Daniels said.

One cat had an eye injury that was left untreated for such a long period of time that her eye decompressed. "It will have to be removed, she had an extremely bad case of ringworm, flea anemia and is possibly pregnant."

One cat had an eye infection, left untreated, so that the conjunctiva had adhered to the cornea, and the eye will possibly have to be removed.

Mature cats with strong immune systems were less affected but were also treated for respiratory infections.

Since then, volunteers have been locked out of the facility by the Carpentiers, and an investigation was conducted by the Sheriff's Department, which oversees the Division of Animal Services.

Heidi was fined $345 in 1999 and received a year of probation on a similar charge. Her mother, Hertha, said they had to close the ARC storefront because they did not have enough volunteers to keep it running.

Hertha said the cats that came into the facility were very sick, and every effort was made to try to get the proper care for them.

"All she (Heidi) cared about was their welfare," Hertha said. "The cats were taken care of every day. The best possibly that could be done. Animals that came in sick were taken to the vets. We're being accused of not doing so."

Two other volunteers have also come forward in support of the Carpentiers.

Arylane Hill of Arroyo Grande, an occasional volunteer for the ARC, said, "This is a group that I have volunteered for a few times. I just think that they have done a lot here, which no other group has done, to help find homes for the cats. And they've done the best they could on a limited amount of funds. It's just a shame that someone has caused problems and is not interested in doing something on their own."

She said the ARC was the only facility of its kind in the South County, that ARC was always willing to trap and save feral cats and was close to reaching its goal of a no-kill shelter.

Marquart said an investigation into the ARC is in the process of being completed and forwarded to the district attorney.

Eric Anderson, DVM, animal services manager for the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department, said the Carpentiers have voluntarily released the remaining cats to Animal Services and the North County Humane Society. So far, 18 cats have been turned in, he said.

"The ARC has stopped the operation on a voluntary basis," Anderson said. "They have released the cats to us and North County Humane Society for adoption."

Anderson would not release the condition of the cats he has treated because of the investigation being by the Sheriff's Department. But he said, generally speaking, conditions at the ARC were not ideal for a cat shelter but conditions at other shelters in the county are up to par.

"This was the exception," he said. "The quality of care at facilities like Woods Humane Society and the North County Humane Society is certainly good."

Robyn Cooper, a former volunteer at The Club and currently an employee for the Central Coast Spay Shuttle, said most of the cats that have been turned over to Animal Services were Club cats, but cats that were stored at the ARC storefront are still missing.

She said Heidi was never able to turn down cats, and the volunteers were consistently overwhelmed.

"The reason we stayed so long was we thought we could make a positive change," Cooper said.

She said the volunteers begged Heidi to improve the conditions, but they were belittled for not working hard enough.

As an example, Cooper said, after a rain storm flooded out The Club, leaving cats that had no cover wet and sick, she and her husband, Benjamin, purchased a tarp to cover the area. But Heidi complained it would be too hot under the tarp when the sun came out.

"There was always a reason why we couldn't make changes," she said. "We begged to do this stuff. We stopped asking and started doing."

She has started a tip line called the "For Bob" Hotline at 474-0391. (Bob was a cat who was part of an animal abuse case, and the tip line is named in his memory.) She hopes anyone who has information on the remaining cats, were eye-witnesses to neglect at the ARC or received sick cats from the ARC will come forward.

"We decided we can't walk away from the cats," Cooper said. "We have to stop them completely. Hopefully, we'll stop the cycle."

"I don't think Heidi is a mean person, I just think she has a problem," Cooper added.

She thinks Heidi may suffer from what mental health officials call "animal hoarding syndrome," a known public health problem that is similar to such obsessive-compulsive disorders as obsessive collecting.

Such animal hoarders may have good intentions but inflict suffering on the animals because of their inability to stop. Eventually, conditions may deteriorate to the point that the animals are in worse shape then when they were "rescued."

Evelyn Adams, Cooper's mother, has names and descriptions of at least 14 known missing cats, and she said 42 to 52 were missing at one time. She hopes people who may be housing the cats or know where they are housed will come forward to get them proper care.

According to Cooper, six of the ARC cats still remain at Animal Services, 26 more were taken to the Humane Society, Happy Tails Kennel in San Luis Obispo has 15 ARC cats and Homeless Animal Rescue Team of Cambria has four ARC cats available for adoption.

Anderson said that of the 18 cats turned over to Animal Services, 12 have been adopted out. Six are still at the facility.

"Of those cats, four were feral," he said. "The rest were relatively adoptable."

If other cats are missing, he cannot say.

"As to where those other cats are, I can't speak to it directly."

Hertha said the cats that were at the facilities have all been turned over to Animal Services.

"We will take care of the vet bills. We don't shed our responsibilities," Hertha said. "She (Heidi) loves those four-legged animals"

All of the parties involved agree that a facility for saving cats needs to be available in the South County.

"All the animal people say we need a facility here," Ben Cooper said. "But the all agree it should be done right."

According to Hertha and volunteers, the ARC recently received a $35,000 grant from the Glide Foundation and was going to try to open a bigger facility to begin rescuing dogs. Hertha said the ARC has returned the grant.

Heidi's sister, Anita, said they may open a thrift shop or gift store at the old ARC location to raise money for veterinarian bills for the remaining cats. She said they will no longer work in the cat rescue business, but she hopes other groups in the area will step up to rescue the animals.

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