Tiger Ranch Raided For Animal Cruelty

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korina

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Alot of good people on this site vouched for this woman and her "shelter".

I would like not to pass judgement since I am not a cop, lawyer, or run a cat rescue but this AP article quotes one of her voulenteers who was the informant to the SPCA that she ran a "slow-kill" shelter and alludes to this woman 'losing her mind' (my words) and control of her shelter years ago.

I will judge her and assume that her good will turned to hoarding stray cats in horrible conditions for years.

I wonder if the police will excavate her backyard?, If the rumors are true and thousands of cats are buried there it shows a crime that spanned years.

If this is normal and this woman is the victim of a false accusation please let me know.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h...d85tQD8VDC4V80

Old Thread:
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...=112579&page=2
 

siobhan

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I too want to know more about this. It was on the Boston channels - and the web of course. They did mention it was in Pittsburgh! That would be very sad if that's true - I did hear on the news report that the operator was "unconventional" which said to me they were trying to make her sound like a crazy cat lady and that just made me mad and now I want to look into it.
 

misty fox

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I am from Pittsburgh PA, and am here to tell you about my experince with Tiger Ranch. I "adopted " a dog from Lin Marie. My Vet informed me about a woman who ran a rescue, who had puppies that needed homes, the week I put my beloved dog to rest. The manager at the Vet's office convinced my then boyfriend, getting a puppy would be a very good thing for me, since I was so heartsick over losing my dog, that year I had lost my mother and two of her sisters, favorite Aunts of mine. This just added to the Managers case that a puppy would be just the thing for me. She knew people from a no kill shelter right down the street, where my dog was from, where I had volunteered, so she knew the dog was going to an excellent home.

Lin Marie called me and told me the dog was mine, then told me a friend of hers was taking it, then called me back a week later, and told me the dog was mine if I wanted it. I had to come get it that night after ten, I was so heartsick after losing my own dog, being told I had one, then having that change, then change again. My thoughts were, get this dog away from this woman, something is just odd here. I went that very night and picked up the twelve week pup. We were told to beep at the gate to be let in. Told where to wait, and where to stay, I knew the second I opened the car door why.
The smell was overwhelming even out doors on a crisp fall evening.

Cats where everywhere, the smell was horrid, there was scat all over the ground. She brought the dog out on a leash, and had me sign a contract.
I found it odd that a cat "sanctuary" would have an adoption contract.

I talked to this woman, about what she did, and how she kept the shelter going. She told me she was a Nurse and worked for the three Doctors who "owned" the place. She informed me she breed Percheron horses to pay for the running of the shelter by selling the foals and colts. I offered to give her any help I could with the horses. She refused and also refused to let me see where they were kept, saying they were sleeping. I asked her if she was at all interested in having a news letter for adoption of some of the cats, to find them good homes, offered her photography services, and printing, she again refused, saying she did not have time to screen people to place the cats, she did it by word of mouth, she told me at the time she had between three hundred and four hundred cats. I told her she could help more cats if she made room my placing the ones she had, I got the best look I could at the place while conversing with her, and took note of the henious conditions I saw.

I called every humane agent in the Pittsburgh area and reported what I saw.
Told them the condition the dog was in, took her to the Vet who told me about her, she was treated for worms, fleas, ear mites, all horrid cases of each. I continued to report what I had seen at Tiger Ranch to anyone who worked with animals. No one seemed to think anything was wrong.

None of the HA's from the local area seemed to be involved in shutting this slow kill shelter down, they were all from other areas.

It is sad that things like this go on, I reported her back in '03 knowing how many cats were there, and the conditions I saw. Neighbors had been complaining for years. The horses and the cats are going to shelters.

I want people to know, this woman was reported, by someone active in the animal community, I spoke with DA and HA, and continued to do so.

I was not at all surpised to see this happen, I am heart sick for the animals.

What does surpise me, is how very long this went on, with the complaints I know they were getting, how could they not get a search warrent to enter that property, and stop this before it got so bad?

As a personal side note, that dog was stolen from my property, my x boyfriend broke into my house and stole the dog. Lin could have filed an action in replevin for me, as the shelter contract stated, she promised me she would, she told me she checked with the "owners" ( she is the owner) and they said it was alright, as long as I could do her "chores" for her while she went and filed . She would not let me on to the ranch that day, never returned my phone calls, she just let it go, and let a dog she gave up for adoption, go from its happy loving home, with a fenced in back yard, a responsible owner with a job , who took care of the dog and loved it.
To a cramped basement apt, with no yard ,to a person who had been un employed for over a year. Filing the action at the JP would have taken under a half an hour. To me, that is not an animal lover , to me it was just another red flag in the long line of them, that this woman was not fit to own any animals at all.

I have seen many posts people made on sites saying the volunteered for Lin,
this investagation took years. She did not let anyone on that place unless she knew them. Now we all know why.

Thank you for hearing my story.
 

jen

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I don't know where to begin on this. I went there a lot a few years back. I loved it there. I wonder how bad it got in the past two years or so. When I went she had 300-400 cats. Not 750. I think things just got way out of control. I know I am just one person out of the many but I know that she DID give tours of the place. She allowed anyone who asked a tour. But only on the days she was open to the public not just any old time people showed up, jumped her fence, hounded her with phone calls demanding she take their animals, threw animals over the fence and left... etc...

I have seen a few people making comments like "this is what happens when you don't spay and neuter..." But this wasn't a case of not spaying and neutering, it was just simply not believing in euthanasia which caused everything to spiral out of control. You cannot run a rescue and NOT believe in euthanizing sick and suffering animals. That is part of the territory. This is where I believe Tiger Ranch failed. She didn't euthanize the dying and suffering animals. But she DID contain sick cats in certain areas. She DID use foster homes for certain cats, puppies, pregnant cats, feral kittens, bottle babies. She DID have a great resource for FIV and FeLV cats who have no place else. She DID spay and neuter the cats there. She even held low cost clinics on site every Monday I believe it was.I know that she did not accept every animal brought to her, I have seen her turn people away. I also know that if she agreed to take in a litter, she would only do it if the mother was spayed first.

I feel bad for all the animals. I really want to know what happened to the dogs. She had amazing and wonderful dogs. I don't know all the details of all the accusations against her. I am afraid to really know the truth. It is so sad. I cry when I think of the FIV/FeLV cats I have taken there knowing they would have a safe place to live because I am sure the humane officers euthanized them first.

I would like to say that I find it odd that Misty Fox finds it odd that she had people fill out an adoption contract? That is usually a GOOD thing, I have never heard anyone refer to it as a bad thing... Any good rescue or shelter or even just a person adopting an animal from their home should have an adoption contract. That is just being responsible, keeping track of where the animal goes, doing what she can to help them go to a good home.

I don't know. I am done. I can't read anymore about this. I am sad. I don't know how to feel. Poor cats. Poor Lin.
 

petfriends

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HI all, I just wanted to take a moment to post here regarding the horror at Tiger Ranch in Pennsylvania, Cat rescue. Someone here ages ago was the first person to suggest sending them some of our rescue cats as we were being bombarded with so many, but we never did, thank god.

Please make sure if you know anyone who did, they try to at least get their cats back, if possible.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pitt.../s_557259.html
 

graciecat

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I've wanted to comment on this since I heard about it, but just couldn't put my thoughts into words.
Jen, you did it for me.

I have a friend who did TNR for years, I won't get into the reasons she stopped, she met Lin Marie while doing TNR, I also met Lin Marie once, through this friend.
The person described in all the news reports isn't the Lin Maire that I was introduced to.
The Woman I met was a loving, caring person and not the "Crazy Cat Lady" that the news reports describe.
Like Jen, it was two or three years ago and I know things can change but Dear God it just breaks my heart to think that things got that bad.

My friend had stayed in contact with Lin Marie over the years, but hadn't been to Tiger Ranch for a long while then in September she had trapped some FIV/FeLV cats.
She called Lin Marie and she told my friend to bring them down so she did.
Like Jen said my heart is breaking right now because I know as well as I'm sitting here right now that those cats were PTS yesterday.

I want so badly to talk to my friend about this, but she's in Florida right now visiting her in-laws.
I can't call her on vacation and break her heart.

I agree with you, Jen I can't read anymore about this.
My heart just breaks for all of those cats and dogs and yes, for Lin Marie too.
 

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I heard about Tiger Ranch here a long while back, from Jen, I think. Much later I heard the shelter south of me, in Indiana, was making many regular trips out there to Tiger Ranch to drop off dozens of cats. I still didn't feel right about it and sought other options.

Eventually someone I knew rode along and reported back to me. It was the same reports as here...not top notch "kitty hilton" but better then other alternatives. I phoned and spoke to Lin Marie and set up an appt to bring 20 cats to her. She did sound reaosnable and kind. That said, my gut kept telling me this could not be good. It is unfathomable to me that anyone could take in endless numbers of cats from all over the country. I went ahead with the plans to take cats there up to having a relative here to watch my own pets while I made the trip, had the crates ready to go, the paperwork ready, etc.

At the very last possible second the person who visited first hand started telling me 'not to freak out' that they uses spray bottles at each door to chase the cats back to get in and out......then that when she was there lines of vans from various states were lined up dropping off cats....then the clincher, that all arriving cats were 'dumped' together in one big building and if necessary chased out of their crates into the building with squirt bottles....in order to then determine who was feral and who was tame and who would be turned out into the feral community and who would be kept in teh buildings. Well....how could you determine in a building full of newly dumped, scared, free roaming cats, who was feral and who was scared?

I was told the cats needed to be fully vetted, altered and paperwork to prove it and a $25 donation per cat. That is a more then fair 'donation' to take a cat into a good rescue...MUCH more then fair, but to charge that to turn around and let them out into a feral community??

In the end, luckily, I just followed my gut that it was 'too good to be true' and there was no way to effectively run a sufficient shelter without a multi million dollar budget, to take in van loads of cats from all over the country. The help I had to transport wasn't thrilled to be called off at the last minute, but I'm awfully glad I followed my instincts. I"m not downing anyones intentions but SURELY this is the perfect illustration that if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

I'm appalled that the shelter near us that trucked so many out there, has no intention of following up and trying to re-rescue anything they took to Tiger ranch.
 

misty fox

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Originally Posted by Jen

I would like to say that I find it odd that Misty Fox finds it odd that she had people fill out an adoption contract? That is usually a GOOD thing, I have never heard anyone refer to it as a bad thing... Any good rescue or shelter or even just a person adopting an animal from their home should have an adoption contract. That is just being responsible, keeping track of where the animal goes, doing what she can to help them go to a good home.
Let me start by saying, I have logged countless hours in a non-kill here in Pittsburgh. Have taken HD dogs, and given them a life they would not have had if not given a chance.I know how shelters work, and have worked with some private ones to help them improve, by placing pets so they can save more, having room to do so.

This is why I was "choosen" to rescue a dog from what was known as a cat santuary. I was told by the Vets office and Lin Marie, she did not place cats, and was not the least bit interested in doing so, she was offered space for free in a shelters paper that gave bios of pets looking for homes. I tried to explain to her that she could help more cats, if she found homes for some of the ones she was housing, I know numerous people who offered the same, she was not interested in their help either. This has gone on since '03, people have offered, and they were refused.You simply can not take in animals and keep taking them in, success depends on placement in loving good homes, and making room for more. It just is good managment and sense.


If you would have read my entire post Jen, you would see that Lin Marie did not keep her end of the contract, she would not file an action to see a dog returned to a loving owner and the only home the dog had ever known.
Why even have a contract if you have no intention up holding it? and are a so called santuary, that does not adopt out? Let alone one in dog boilerplate for a dog, you had given away, then suddenly had back? something was fishy from the get go, and if anyone could think the conditions at that place were suitable for any animals is beyond my realm of rational.That is why I am puzzled by the contract,and the fact that she would not stand behind it.

Lin Marie told me she did not "own" the ranch, worked for a group of Doctors that did, and that she worked days as a Nurse which is why she asked things be done after ten in the evening. I have heard countless other stories she told, but this is the one she told me, and I will not contribte to something I did not hear first hand.

I fail to see how anyone who claims to love animals can see any animal who is suffering, let it go on when there is a humane choice. I live about twenty minutes from where this is going on, I have talked not only to the H.A's I know, but to the local media as well . This is not a witch hunt, it is being over seen by the PA SPCA, you can hear their thoughts on any of the videos the local news is showing, a google search will bring AP stories as well.

What is done in the dark comes out in the light.
 

anmccleod

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No, she was not a member here.

What we are seeing are the two conflicting sides to this story.
The media and many other present this lady(Lin Marie) as a horrible person, while others say it was not like this at all.

Jen visited the Tiger Ranch and even took cats there. She was just telling us what she knows and has seen, and her thoughts on the situation.

Misty Fox is doing the same.

This looks to be a case of a woman who once had a really good thing going and it got out of control.
 

missymotus

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Originally Posted by Graciecat

The Woman I met was a loving, caring person and not the "Crazy Cat Lady" that the news reports describe.
That's the media for you


RIP all the kitties that were pts
 

jen

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Originally Posted by missymotus

That's the media for you


RIP all the kitties that were pts
Exactly the same for me too. Eccentric maybe but not crazy. I met her and visited with her many times. I would take some cats out there and then stay the whole day and help with incoming cats. Never once did I see a squirt bottle used to scare cats out of a cage. She would leave the cage in the room with the cat until it came out if it was too scared. I just hate all this hearsay going on when hardly anyone has gone there first hand to see anything. Now like I said, I haven't been there in about 2 years, and she did have WAY more cats then she did when I would go. So I can see things obviously got out of hand. I am not disagreeing with that. I am also not disagreeing that she is very wrong on her euthanasia beliefs. And i have a hard time saying that what someone believes in is wrong.

I also don't know why people are saying that she never adopted out cats??? She had a whole enclosure of adoptable cats. People were there every Saturday (that is usually the day I went out) to adopt. I have taken kittens from there myself.

She also asks $5 for adult cats and $1 for kittens as a surrender fee. Not $25. I always told her she should ask more as every rescue shelter I ever worked at asked at least $50, $5 is ridiculously low for doing these people a favour. And I really really liked how she handled the feral cats. She would release the one's that she was told were feral into the feral enclosure. But as she gave tours to people adopting or checking the place out, and as she made rounds to give medication (yes! medication! She DID medicate the cats as well as her vet, despite what the media might tell you, I have even helped with it) if she noticed a cat in the feral area that was friendlier, who was coming around and greeting people and meowing for attention, or even simply just not running away when approached, she would move them into the adoptable enclosure or put them into a foster home to socialize.

I firmly believe that things just got out of hand. She DID take care of the ones that she could. She did medicate cats. All the ones loose in front were her own cats that were either chronic with sinus problems, very old, or had some sort of defect. I often think this also gave off the wrong impression since those are the first cats you see when you come onto the property. Cleanliness of the place also varied. If you went on a sweltering hot humid summer day, the place stunk. If you went on a rainy muddy day, the place looked extra filthy. It was not a paradise, it was just a place where unwanted cats could be fed and live until they are adopted or pass away. And again, I do disagree with the fact that she didn't euthanize. That is terrible. I have mixed emotions.

I wasn't going to keep replying but here I go lol. I don't think I can say anything else except that it is a shame about this whole thing in general. Tiger Ranch will be missed, I wish someone might have stepped in earlier and helped her fix things up. They finally finished the new building (the one you see on the right in front of the pictures on tv/online) and that was the intake building. A little office too so that paperwork and records were kept safely.

Ok I am done. I am going to cry.
 

petfriends

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I can only assure you I spoke to Lin Marie personally regarding taking cats there and she DID tell me $25 per cat. There would be no reason for me to lie about that because I still think that is a more then fair price to surrender a cat.

The person who witnessed how the cats were sprayed with water botttles probably didn't tell me at first because she knew I'd never go with it. I'm sure it is possible that other people who worked there DID resort to that and you would not know about it, necessarily. I would think if you had vans lined up from all over with dozens of cats each, you'd have to move pretty fast and it could happen when someone working there is stressing.

My point was you should trust your gut, if something is too good to be true, it usually is....AND...that the shelters who dropped off, should be pitching it to clean up the situation, imo.
 

misty fox

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I agree the shelters who used Tiger Ranch as a drop should be held to task.

I will say this as gently as I can, it is very hard for me to belive, is that no one else who claims to have "visited" this place saw nothing wrong. I live not twenty minutes from there, have been there several times, each time I was there I witnessed things that caused me to lose sleep, make phone calls, write letters, offer to work with the horses, having a great deal of training experience, offered free space in a shelter news letter, for not only pics and bios of cats needing homes, but for food and supply donations, offered to do a news letter for the Ranch alone.None of these offers were taken up on.

I am not the only person who has done this, reps from the shelters, spoke with her, the public TV station in the area offered her TV time. All refused.

Can you honestly belive that the Pennsylvania SPCA is trumping up charges?Do you in your heart of hearts belive they want to see any shelter fail?

I wish someone would address the HUNDREDS of dead cats found in freezers,the ones laying in a feces filled litter box, the holes filled with dead bodies.Only more will be un earthed as they are bringing in heavy digging equipment. Think they are making that up? they are showing very graphic pictures here on the local news, taken from on the scene. I do not think they are staging this sort of horror for ratings or a good story, pardon me for saying this, it is sort of sick to think so.

I know the conditions those horses lived in, I know what I saw with my own two eyes, I know the condition of the dog I brought home and what it took to bring that pup back to good health. I know the smell of sick animals and the smell of fear, I saw the conditions of the place, now and then.

This has been something I have been watching go on since '03 not far from my home. I have been active in shelter and rescuses for years. Worked with HD dogs, every pet in my home is from a situation they needed to be removed from.

I feel sorry for this woman, I feel sorrier yet for the cats, dogs, goat and the horses that were forced to live under these conditions.

I am not pleased at all that the humane agents in this area, turned a blind eye to what was going on at Tiger Ranch, since they all in my eyes contributed, by continuing to take cats there.

Lee Nesser is the only person who refused to add to the problems by taking cats to the Ranch, since she felt there were too many there already.

The local news is still covering this story, things are still being uncovered about the runnings of Tiger Ranch, and what really went on there.

I will leave you with this, I came here to tell my story, with nothing in my heart but concern and sorrow for this situation. I have been to the Ranch, I did not add to its problems, I rescued a dog from there. I left a donation far more than what was asked for, I got people to donate food, litter, supplies of all types. I tried to help in anyway I could. Networked with others in the community to help her, we were all told story after story of why she did not want to do things.

Let alone my own issue with the dog I rescued from her, where she promised me she would to go the JP and file the action, as her contract stated, that if the dog were removed from my home, it became property of the Ranch. I was there at the time I was told to be, ready to do her "chores" for the day, since the "owners" of the Ranch she said, told her that was the only way she could go to the JP if someone covered her.I stood at that gate,for close to an hour, not beliving this was happening, not beliving she would not go and get the help that dog needed to be returned to its loving home, I was going to give her a check with all the fees paid to the JP, then write yet another generious donation check. I never heard from her again, she never returned a phone call, or offered me any explaination about why she went back on her personal promise to me, or refused to uphold her own contract. My beloved dog was lost to someone who took her for spite, he never cared about that dog, and was not fit to own an animal. He took her to an out of State shelter where she was PTS.


All I can imagine is the countless other people who may have had no choice but to bring a beloved pet to there, and are now wondering whatever became if it. I do belive Lin Maries heart was in the right place. She did have to under go psychiatric evaluation, I am sure they will now say she had some syndrome that made her "hoade" animals.

Whatever happens, it is all about the health and happiness of the animals their safety, and the rights to the medical help they need.

I think the SPCA is doing the very best it can, imagine how heartbreaking it is for them who are witnessing this horror first hand. That man was crying onTV .I do not think they are exaggerating this situation. They have nothing to gain by it, when it gives shelters a bad name.


I do not want to argue with anyone, I live, like I said not twenty minutes from the place, have been there, have rescued from there, sent donations and got others to do the same. I see first hand what is going on daily.

Thanks for hearing me out. I only want the truth to come out if this.
 

alyssa

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It sounds like she simply lost her sanity.

Or perhaps an early onslaught of dementia. Chances are when you guys that saw the place as being nice were there ... she was FINE. And then she just lost it in the years afterwards. Going crazy can be quick. A person can be fine and then just lose grip, in the matter of days.

Being isolated and with a HUGE responsibility can be a huge weight.

I think rather than crying that the animals were put to sleep the crying should be what they had to live with and through while they were there. Being put to sleep truly was the greatest kindness. Living a horrible life is not nice or kind.

Euthanasia is one of the greatest gifts that we can give to an animal that is hurting or sick and it's needs cannot be met, or when it is just their time. Dying peacefully in the arms of folks that care is far better than in some hole of hell. You can bet every animal that was PTS from that shelter was likely cried over and loved up on and kindly and with care finally euthansized which was better than gasping out a last breath buried under other bodies.

Work in a convalescent hospital and you will see that prolonging life past a creatures will to live isn't really nice or being kind. It's too bad that humans are denied to choose their passing in a peaceful way if they so desire.

This is a very good reason though in why we should not be so quick to vouch for a place that we are not aware of the current state of. Things can change in a week - let alone years.

I feel for all the people that sent their animals there and all the animals, and yes, I feel for the lady as well, as I am quite sure that she went a little nutty or needed meds or better meds or is suffering dementia or something like that. The whole thing is just sad, and my heart goes out to all.


Just my opinion.
 

709juggalette

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WOW...thats all I can say.
Poor cats.There was/is something wrong with the woman...maybe she was fine at first,but as the poster above me mentioned...she most likely just lost it.750 cats? Don't agree with euthnasia when it may be the best thing for a sick cat?

*shakes head*
 

graciecat

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I shouldn't speak for Jen, but I don't believe that she believes for one second that charges were "trumped up".
I don't believe they were "Trumped up"

I don't know Jen personally, but I know that IF she had seen any of the things that are being brought to light now she WOULD have reported it...it might not have done her any good, but I KNOW she would have reported it.
My friend who took the + cats there had stayed in contact with Lin Marie over the years and even though they were friends of a sort, she would have reported Lin Marie in a New York minute if she'd seen any of this.
So you may find it hard to believe that others didn't see what you saw, but they didn't at least Jen and my friend didn't because like I said Jen and my friend would not in any way, shape or form have just walked away with filing a report.

It seems obvious to me that something happend to Lin Marie's mind, because the person they're describing now, isn't the person I met.
 
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