Staff at the Woodbury Animal Shelter believe about 100 cats were in and around a home on Summit Avenue in Monroe when a fire broke out.
Firefighters with the Woodbury Fire Department stated on social media they arrived Thursday afternoon to an “extreme hoarding situation,” which made the fire especially dangerous to fight.
They also rescued several cats.
The homeowner was not home at the time.
What You Need To Know
- Animal advocates estimate 100 cats were at a Monroe home when a fire broke out
- Firefighters said they also were challenged by an “extreme hoarding situation”
- Woodbury Animal Shelter staff said, so far, about 30 cats have been treated and are now in quarantine for fleas
- Staff said Tuesday they are still working to rescue the remaining cats, which are roaming the woodsy neighborhood
“We’re all happy that she’s safe,” neighbor Socrates DeJesus said.
DeJesus and several other neighbors said they had already been worried about the woman who lives in the cluttered home long before the fire.
Neighbors described a worsening stray cat problem and growing trash piles.
“I wasn’t surprised because the house looked like, at some point, something was about to happen,” DeJesus said.
Woodbury Animal Shelter staff said, so far, about 30 cats had been treated and were in quarantine for fleas. Staff said Tuesday they were still working to rescue the remaining cats, which are roaming the woodsy neighborhood.
A woman who said she is the daughter of the homeowner approached a reporter outside the home Tuesday morning and said she hopes people from the community donate to the shelter and their local veterinarians to help cats who have been rescued from unsafe homes.
The woman said that since her mother was not home at the time of the fire, that she was safe, but added the family was struggling to help her mother “to keep it all together.”
Another family member who passed by the home later Tuesday said the homeowner is a widow and prone to hoarding items in the home.
Shelter staff said an additional challenge was that kitten season is just starting. Some of the cats they rescued are pregnant and so could be many other cats they were still trying to trap, which may create a space crunch at the shelter.
Shelter staff said anyone who regularly feeds a group of stray cats should take the cats to be spayed or neutered, or at least seek help to get them fixed.
Firefighters did not report any injuries, despite handling numerous obstacles and frightened cats.
