SPCA Rescues 29 Cats From Monterey County Hoarder

MONTEREY COUNTY (CBS SF) -- Twenty-nine cats were rescued from an elderly man who was hoarding the animals in a remote location covered with 25 tons of garbage in unincorporated Monterey County on Tuesday morning, officials said.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for Monterey County arrived to find a 73-year-old man living in an area littered with about a dozen assorted trailers and 20 junk vehicles off Jolon Road in Lockwood around10:30 a.m., SPCA Sgt. Stacy Sanders said.

The Monterey County Sheriff's Office notified the SPCA of the cats after inspecting the area, code enforcement officer Phillip Hickenbottom said.

The man had been living in a motor vehicle on the property without running water, electricity or sewage for about 10 years, Hickenbottom said.

The cats were confined to five motor homes covered with dead mice, feces and trash, Sanders said.

Six of the cats were locked in crates without food or water and with feces overflowing six to seven inches from their litter boxes, she said.

"This situation was unlivable for human beings, let alone cats," Sanders said.

The SPCA brought the cats to its shelter to medically evaluate and treat the animals, Sanders said.

All the cats have been diagnosed with severe upper respiratory conditions ranging in severity, she said.

She is hopeful that none of the cats will need to be euthanized.

Police called Adult Protective Services to provide a mental and physical evaluation of the hoarder, who has been given 30 days to clean the property, Hickenbottom said.

The total cost for cleaning the area is estimated at $14,000, Hickenbottom said.

"We don't believe he has the mental, physical or monetary capabilities to meet that deadline," Hickenbottom said.

The primary concern is to provide proper care to him and to the cats, he said. Many of the cats have experienced almost no human interaction, Sanders said.

"Some are very friendly and some are more skittish," Sanders said.

Sanders reminds pet owners to take responsibility of maintaining proper care of their animals.

"Hoarding is a mental illness. In this case, it affected innocent animals," Sanders said.

People interested in donating to help fund the medical care of the cats or adopting the animals should call the SPCA at (831) 373-2631.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services may have contributed to this report.)