All charges dropped in Tiger Ranch case

catsknowme

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so, it sounds like the raid may have been playing up to AnimalCops' cameras:
http://kdka.com/pets/Tiger.Ranch.raid.2.690849.html
And this slide show of the inspection in 2006 shows a virtual cat paradise- proof that TigerRanch supporters are probably right:
http://kdka.com/slideshows/Animal.Fr...45.html?rid=14
When I first heard about the breaking story, I assumed that it was another hoarder case. WRONG!!! More like a case of media hysteria
Thank Heaven that someone started the thread here at TCS that gave us a chance to see both sides of the story!!! How sad that the "rescued" cats are probably very sadly caged in traditional animal shelters now- taken from their parklike setting, with enclosed indoor/outdoor shelters - talk about the solution being worse than the problem
 

going nova

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That Deb Urmann seems more concerned with shutting down Tiger Ranch than actually helping the animals... to me, it just doesn't look like she's concerned with the fate of the animals that were taken. She looks angry, but not really sad.
 

mschauer

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I'm confused. According to the first article, yes the charges where technically dropped but were immediately refiled. They were only dropped the first time because the defense said that as filed they didn't contain enough information.

I haven't been following this so don't have a clue what it is all about. I'm just wondering if I'm missing something cuz the thread title says the charges were dropped but effectively it seems they weren't.

What am I missing???
 

catsknowme

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The original charges were dropped due to faulty filing, but the proscecution is considering filing a new complaint. A case of all of our rights being protected

If you missed the original thread, you can link to it here:
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=160927
there are pros and cons with some very good pros and some very good advice on withholding judgment. I am sorry to admit that I was quick to jump on the "outraged-wagon"
but not as sorry as those poor kitties who are off the ranch and encaged in shelters
 

mschauer

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Originally Posted by catsknowme

The original charges were dropped due to faulty filing, but the proscecution is considering filing a new complaint.
The article says the charges were almost immediately refiled. That's why I was confused:

Fourteen counts of animal cruelty were dismissed against embattled cat shelter owner Linda Bruno Thursday, but those and hundreds more were almost immediately refiled by authorities.
Thanks for the link. I'll read the whole thread when I have a chance...
 

cc12

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I am not familiar with the case and at first I thought it was a case of hoarding but in truth she was running a sanctuary.
So many of these things come down to politics between unknown entities pulling strings.
From the inspection photos it looked like a bit of kitty heaven.
 

misty fox

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Originally Posted by catsknowme

so, it sounds like the raid may have been playing up to AnimalCops' cameras:
http://kdka.com/pets/Tiger.Ranch.raid.2.690849.html
And this slide show of the inspection in 2006 shows a virtual cat paradise- proof that TigerRanch supporters are probably right:
http://kdka.com/slideshows/Animal.Fr...45.html?rid=14
When I first heard about the breaking story, I assumed that it was another hoarder case. WRONG!!! More like a case of media hysteria
Thank Heaven that someone started the thread here at TCS that gave us a chance to see both sides of the story!!! How sad that the "rescued" cats are probably very sadly caged in traditional animal shelters now- taken from their parklike setting, with enclosed indoor/outdoor shelters - talk about the solution being worse than the problem
The cats , most of them in poor health are being treated in a temporary animal hospital: http://www.boston.com/news/nation/ar...t_tender_care/


These cats are finally receving the medical treatment they need to survive.
When they are healthy, homes will be found for them. Here in PA there are school groups, animal groups , and others, grassroot planning things they can do to help these cats all find good homes, appropriate for their life styles.

As for the allegations being made , may I suggest reading this article.

http://www.pspca.org/news?id=89


These cats are going to make history, they are going to be able to do what no other animal in an abuse case has ever done. Thanks to forensic medicine, these cats will be able to tell their story, they will be given what no other abused animal has ever had. A voice.
 

abbycats

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I can't make a judgement call. I know how media and animal control can blow things way out of proportion. I just pray that the remaining cats are given the chance at rehoming in a forever loving homes and that animal control doesn't euthanize them. Animal control always tries to come across as this group that wants to save the animals and they are the biggest killers of them all.
 

jen

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All I will say is THANK GOD THE CHARGES WERE DROPPED, I hope she gets all the animals back that the raiders DIDN'T kill.
 

going nova

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Originally Posted by abbycats

Animal control always tries to come across as this group that wants to save the animals and they are the biggest killers of them all.


While Linda Bruno may have taken on too many cats, her
seemed to be in the right place. Rather than punish her, why not help her?

The first step might be to set restrictions on the number of animals that can be taken in by a sanctuary. If she let things get out of hand due to mental instability, maybe some therapy is in order. Locking her up and fining her isn't going to help any cats. I don't believe she was intentionally harming any cats (although I could be wrong), just swamped in trying to take care of them.

The animal care and control wants to adopt out all of those cats... but what about the cats in shelters already waiting to get homes? You can't tell me that they aren't going to euthanize any healthy cats in the time it takes to find homes for the Tiger Ranch cats (maybe from their kill shelters- cats they might have found homes for if the focus were not Tiger Ranch).

If Linda Bruno does get her cats back, people who really want to help will volunteer their time to take care of them.

If she doesn't get her cats back, the people involved in seizing them should be personally responsible for their care. I really would like to see where everyone involved in seizing the cats takes on the maximum number that is legal in that area. I doubt that will happen, though they all claim to care so much.
 

cc12

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The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.
Most likely she meant well but was not equipped to do what she wanted to do. 750 cats is too many.
I went to a sanctuary here where I live where they are a shelter of last resort. They were very dedicated women. They opened the place on the weekends for people to come and play with the cats. They had resources and yet they still would not go over 75 cats because there is no way to properly care for more than that. Maybe she is not intentionally neglectful but cats should not look like that.
She says she does not believe in PTS but to me that is more about her and not about the cats. Those cats with infected eyes, noses and such should not have looked like that.
My question is how in the world could she get the proper meds and proper care to so many. She would need hundreds of volunteers daily to run a place where each cat was properly cared for.
As we know cats are not pack animals and living in shelter situations is stressful for cats. I saw photos of a cat barely able to move in the litterbox.

She should not get the cats back because I think she is not mentally capable or financially solvent enough to do what she intends. She would have to be a multi millionaire to care for 750 cats or even 500 cats. Our no kill humane society is a multi million dollar facility and they foster out loads of the cats before putting them up for adoption.

How could she stop disease from spreading? Plus I don't believe animal lovers would seize cats from good home. If these cats were in good shape then why are other vets finding malnutrition and other problems.

I think she has a hoarder problem underneath her benevolence. In other words I think that she runs a sanctuary AND has become a hoarder. Maybe she did not start that way but perhaps she evolved into one.
 
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