It was a jarring discovery made by youngsters who had been using their bikes via the woods subsequent to the Southern State Parkway on Tuesday.
“There were like five to 10 cats in the dog crate over here,” stated animal rescuer John Debacker who took NBC New York into the woods the place he rescued the cats and kittens. There he discovered a number of canine crates and pods, holding as many as 30 felines. Whereas he noticed empty baggage of cat meals and litter containers, he believed that they had been deserted.
“They didn’t seem overly neglected so someone has been taking care of them in the past, but it probably just got too overwhelming,” stated Debacker. “That’s a lot of cats for someone to take care of.”
The cats had been delivered to the City of Oyster Bay animal shelter in Syosset for analysis. However what Debacker didn’t know, was that the cats had an proprietor, Thomas McDermott. He went to the shelter to search for his cats when he realized that they had been taken away.
“I love them they are my cats and I’ve been taking care of them for years,” stated McDermott. “I do everything I can. I spend twenty dollars on food for them every two days. Yesterday I left them food and water at 8 a.m. and I left for work. They must have finished the food when they were discovered.”
McDermott, who’s 29-years-old, says he was pressured out of his household dwelling final week and has been dwelling within the woods along with his cats, whereas looking for a spot for them to remain.
“Last night I wasn’t sure what I was going to do,” stated McDermott when he noticed that his cats had been taken. “I almost walked away from everything but I found out they were here and so I came back.”
“Rescuers discovered most of the cats and kittens were in cages and carriers open to the elements without food and water,” claimed city of Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino.
The Nassau County district legal professional says she’s launching an investigation. “The cats need to have shelter, to have food the right vaccines and medicines they need,” she defined. “We can’t have them living by the parkway in cages.”
Lavender, Coco, Zeus, and Nova are simply a few of the names McDermott gave to his pets and he helped establish the animals which at the moment are being held in particular person crates on the shelter. He says ideally, he want to have all of them again.
However the district legal professional’s workplace says whether or not or not he will get any of the cats again will rely upon their investigation.
