Officials will petition a judge for legal authority over the cats at a hearing Tuesday.
The animals were found Oct. 1 in 1818 Grandview Blvd. Animal Control officers were called by police, who were investigating a rank smell.
Mark Lanning, 56, of Sioux City, has been charged with 14 counts of animal neglect. City officials also plan to ask the court to require Lanning to pay for the cats’ care in the past week.
While officials wait for Tuesday’s hearing, the cats are being tested for feline leukemia. If some of the animals test positive, they may all have to euthanized, said Cindy Rarrat, of Sioux City Animal Control.
The disease is fatal. Even cats that don’t test positive could still get the disease, she said.
“Chances are, they could end up with the disease,” Rarrat said.
Authorities say they found overflowing litter boxes and a 3-inch layer of feces on the floor parts of in the house, which no one had lived in for several months. They believe someone stopped by periodically to leave food for the cats.
Officials caught about 50 cats that night. They’ve returned twice a day since to set traps for cats hiding behind the walls and in the furnace.
The trapping will continue until officials believe all the live cats are out of the house.
Several dead cats were also found inside the home.
(siouxcityjournal.com - Oct 8, 2012)
