Over 300 Cats Rescued From Apartment After Neighbors Complained Of Smell

Over 300 cats were rescued from an apartment in Toronto on Saturday. The felines were put up in foster care and will be neutered and vaccinated before being put up for adoption, animal rescue officials said.

“Toronto Cat Rescue worked with Toronto Animal Services yesterday to remove cats from a perilous hoarding situation in an apartment in Toronto. Over 300 cats were found, and TCR was on hand to help out and take 70 of the cats on Saturday,” the TCR said on its website.

It added that the cats were doing well in their foster home. Thirty-eight of the rescued animals were taken to the Birch Dan Animal Hospital for treatment.

“Surprisingly, most of them [the cats], pretty much all of them were healthy,” Karley Lux, an employee at the animal hospital told CTV News. “There’s no fleas or infection…which is pretty surprising.”

The animal rescue officials responded to the apartment after residents living in the area complained of a nasty smell coming from it for months. One neighbor, who wished to stay anonymous, told the news station that they thought someone had died inside the house. Another resident expressed shock at the number of cats rescued from the hoarding situation. Many of them apparently thought the house contained 10 to 15 felines at the most.

TCR, a non-profit registered charity, informed animal lovers that keeping more than six cats in a single apartment constitutes as hoarding. Although Canadian Criminal Code does not have a special provision for animal hoarders, Section 445.(1) of the code states that if “a person failed to exercise reasonable care or supervision of an animal or a bird thereby causing it pain, suffering or injury,” he or she will be punished with a maximum fine of 10,000 Canadian dollars (7,440 USD) or up to five years in prison.

“We are so grateful to our volunteers and staff who stepped up to the plate to get cats of the apartment right away. It is the beauty of Toronto Cat Rescue’s flexible structure that allows us to place this many cats at once with our incredible volunteers who care deeply about animal welfare and the health and happiness of all the cats in our care,” TCR said.

It added Saturday’s case was the second large cat hoarding situation it was involved with in a month. “It’s very important that this NOT continue. It’s a terrible way for cats to live. If you know that someone has too many cats, it is best to report it sooner rather than later. Unsterilized cats breed prolifically, and with only a nine week gestation things get out of control VERY quickly."