Anyone dealt directly with a collector before?

[momofmany]

I get the "pleasure" (there is sarcasm in that word) to go into a collector's house tomorrow night to take pictures of her cats. We are distributing them to the rescue groups around town so that they can all be pulled and adopted. She was ordered to get rid of her cats. We don't know how many are actually in there because the numbers keep changing each time we talk to her. None are neutered (surprise!), and I've already been warned that I will probably need to throw out my clothes when I get home. I will put Vicks Vapor Rub under my nose before I go in there.

Has anyone had to go into a house like this, and any suggestions on how to stay calm, composed and polite to a person like this? Until the cats are out of there, we are going to be nice.

Thanks in advance!

 

[luvmyfurbabys]

Originally posted by Momofmany
I get the "pleasure" (there is sarcasm in that word) to go into a collector's house tomorrow night to take pictures of her cats. We are distributing them to the rescue groups around town so that they can all be pulled and adopted. She was ordered to get rid of her cats. We don't know how many are actually in there because the numbers keep changing each time we talk to her. None are neutered (surprise!), and I've already been warned that I will probably need to throw out my clothes when I get home. I will put Vicks Vapor Rub under my nose before I go in there.

Has anyone had to go into a house like this, and any suggestions on how to stay calm, composed and polite to a person like this? Until the cats are out of there, we are going to be nice.

Thanks in advance!

From what Ive read ppl collect because they have emotional issues , maybe if you keep the thought in your mind that this woman is sick probably with some sort of untreated mental illness , maybe that would help you to get through it .

 

[wellingtoncats]

Cheese Whiz!(sorry stole that off Sandra lol!) Amy that sounds mighty stressful I sure hope you can survive that without wanting to bite the ladies head off! Sorry I have no experience with the matter so can't help you but I can wish you lots of luck.. Maybe a nose/mouth mask as well as vicks, just incase.

 

[hissy]

You simply concentrate on the task at hand and don't deal with the person, let the sheriff or the law enforcement personnel deal with them. Know that you are going to find some unpleasantness inside, and try to prepare for that as well. You simply go room to room, catching, cornering cats and putting them into available carriers. Take frequent breaks outside away from the house otherwise you will hurl your cookies, and eat light before you leave (mostly liquids) so if you do hurl it will be easier on your system. Just a tip, if she has a big chest freezer, ask someone else to open it, don't you do it.

 

[purrfectcatlove]

What I see on TV in animal cops is that they spray themself (cloth) with flea spray , so they wont get to much bitten by them . Maybe you want to think about that befor entering that house . Also if you have a mask like they use in the hospitals or dentist would help with breathing better . Take breaks if you need too .
What I have seen on animal planet , oh gosh

you will be in for a real trip . I have never bin in a colectors house and sure don't want to enter one . Maybe you need to take some water for yourself to trink too , just in case .

I sure feel for you tommorrow , bless your heart .
Please let us know how things go .

 

[cla517]

I think everyone's suggestions have been good. I have no experience with this (Thank God!) but I wanted to wish you luck. Just remember that you are doing a wonderful thing for the poor kitties that are living there.

 

[momofmany]

Thanks all! We are not taking them tomorrow, simply getting pictures so that we can distribute them to the rescue groups in the area to take them. We are out of foster space so are reaching out to all the groups in the area.

I'll let you know how it goes. We go tomorrow at 5:30.

 

[ghostuser]

Don't forget to wear boots. It's gonna be tuff leaving those poor things behind. Good luck. Where are you located?

 

[amberthe bobcat]

Good luck with your rescue mission. To help you deal with the person, just remember this. Most of these people do not do it to be cruel to the animals, they really believe they are helping. Most of these people live alone and these cats are their only companions. I know this doesn't help the cats any, but it helps to understand why they collect.

 

[jeeperscat]

No real suggestions but I wanted to wish you luck, I hope it all goes smoothly!

 

[purrfectcatlove]

Momofmany how did it go ???

 

[momofmany]

I'll start by saying I was only slighty nauseated. She is a collector - not as bad as you would read about in the newspaper or see on animal planet, but one the same. There was no food and water in the house, elimination everywhere, and of course nobody was neutered. There didn't appear to be any cat with bad health, but they were all definitely undernourished. The social worker had already removed all the young kittens, and has allowed her to keep 2 dogs and 2 cats. We have only 8 left to remove.

She seemed eager to help us, as we are helping her. We took pics, wrote up bios and will have a web site up probably tonight. We will arrange for the neuter of the remaining animals, we fed her cats & dogs and left food, and will deliver puppy food to her tomorrow. We'll deliver food to her on a regular basis which will also serve as a home visit.

We gave them my number to give the social worker. She has until Friday to have the cats removed and with no foster homes available, the only option is a kill shelter. We want to make sure the social worker knows that we are actively trying to place these cats. We are desperately trying to get them into foster homes over the next few days to avoid having them PTS. Since 4 of them are Manxes, I've got word out to the National Manx rescue group. It was extremely difficult to walk away and leave them behind tonight.

*whew* I came home and thru my clothes in the washing machine and took a shower. Could only eat some crackers for dinner and am going to bed very soon to snuggle with my babies.

What an experience!

 

[purrfectcatlove]

WOW , it sounds like it was very hard on you . I am sure my heart would have shrunk a bit seeing all that and wanting to take them all . Those poor baby's

, no food or water . Oh gosh , that must be hard to see . Bless your heart for doing so much for all the animals

. I sure will say a prayer for the cats to find a foster home , so they wont be PTS

 

[tulip2454]

Oh this is so sad but as AmbertheBobCat says the lady does not mean to be cruel only helpful that gets out of hand. I have never experienced this (and hope I never do)but good on you for trying all you can. Good luck with the rehoming

 

[momofmany]

Here is the website of the cats that need homes ASAP.

http://www.helppets.org/gvcats.html

 

[jeeperscat]

I'm glad everything went okay. The kitties are gorgeous, especially Patches!! I wish I lived on the same continent. Good luck finding them homes.

 

[talon]

How many were there total?

 

[momofmany]

Since the numbers kept changing each time we talked to the woman, and the social worker had already removed all the young kittens, we're not sure how many there were. Probably 20 cats and 3 dogs, but there were only 10 cats and 2 dogs when we went there last night. The entire home was only about 20X40, so we're not talking about a lot of space in there.

We are going to pull the 8 cats out tonight and bring them to a vet for boarding until we can get them into foster homes. We have found fosters for 4 and a possible 5th in the making. The puppies are going in for a donated neutering on Monday.

*whew* what a day!

 

[lotsocats]

I really admire what you are doing to help these animals. You have earned yourself a lot of positive karma by doing this!

I hope you have success finding homes for all of these poor dogs and cats.

 

[mamakat]

Oh those beautiful babies!! I wish I could help. Where are they located right now? Panda Bear and Bat Boy are just the type of kitties Im used to

I would love to adopt them