 Cats abandoned at veterinary hospital
York, ME (US)Incident Date: Friday, Aug 18, 2006
County: York
Local Map: available
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Barbara Kelleher
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Three cats remain missing, and the woman who allegedly abandoned them faces animal cruelty charges after she allegedly left them in a box outside a local veterinarian's office late at night.
The cats have been missing since 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 18, when Barbara Kelleher of York left them at York Animal Hospital on Route 1, said Animal Control Officer Tom Porter.
One is a 20-year-old tiger, whose body had been shaved due to an infection, he said. It has hair only on its head, tail and half its legs. The other two are gray, approximately 5 years old.
According to Porter, Kelleher, 57, of 11 Triple Oaks Drive, had brought the cats up from Massachusetts. They lived with a woman identified in police reports as Emily Parks of Oakham, Mass., and her mother, a friend of Kelleher's.
The women wanted to put three of their six cats up for adoption, and Kelleher told them that she knew a shelter in Maine, said Porter. The old cat had belonged to Parks since she was a child and was not one of the three to be taken, but Kelleher apparently took it without the women's knowledge, said Porter.
Kelleher told police she left the two grays at the vet's and brought the old cat to her home, where it escaped. Porter believes all three were left at the same time. None of the three had ever been outside, he said.
"She told me she had no idea why she did it," said Porter.
The tiger "was so old, she had to be helped onto Emily Parks' bed. There's no way she escaped," said Porter. "The owner told me, 'If (Kelleher) tells me she killed it, at least I know what happened to it.'"
Porter said he's been down to the area near York Animal Hospital almost daily and has left harmless traps, but with no success. One of the grays was spotted once, but not since.
"The good news," said Porter, is that no passing motorist has reported a dead cat on busy Route 1, "and they call us real quick if they see one."
Kelleher faces a charge of animal cruelty, a Class D misdemeanor with fines of $500 to $2,500. If it can be proved that one of the animals died, the charge would be upgraded to a Class C misdemeanor. She is scheduled to be arraigned Oct. 5. Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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