Hazmat suits couldn’t block ‘burning’ smell of 100 cats in Arkansas home, rescuers say

Animal rescue workers say the conditions at an Arkansas property where 100 cats and one dog were living are some of the worst they’ve encountered.

“Today has been filled with absolute heartbreak and heartache for the pets that have been living in these deplorable conditions for years,” Humane Society of the Delta said in a Facebook post Thursday.

The animal welfare group described the Faulkner County property as infested with fleas and filled with trash and an assault on all the senses.

“We have seen piles of deceased cats today,” the post said, adding that the smell of so many cats, living and dead, was nearly impossible to block out. “Even with our hazmat suits and masks, our sinuses and lungs are burning from the ammonia. Not to mention the countless tears we have shed.”

The group is asking for donations and for prayers.

“It is so much worse than we have imagined, and by far the largest undertaking we have ever endured,” rescuers wrote.

Maggie Bradley, a national animal cruelty investigator, said the scene is “the worst I’ve ever seen,” KATV reported. “This is most likely the largest cat hoarding case in the history of Arkansas; it’s bad.”

The cats were living in two separate houses on the property, and a dog was found by itself in a metal shack out back, according to the TV station. Rescuers came out after the Faulkner County sheriff ordered the owner, who was not living on the property but was still feeding the animals, to surrender the cats and dog.

Gloria Higginbotham, president of the Humane Society of the Delta, expressed some sympathy for the owner, KTHV reported.

“I think that this lady loves her cats. I think she did … the best to her ability,” Higginbotham said. “And things get out of hand with people.”

But after taking the animals off the owner’s hands, the Humane Society is going to need a lot of supplies, she told the outlet. Eventually they’ll need people to adopt, as well.

“We could use anything cat-related,” Higginbotham said. “We need towels, we need blankets, we need kitty litter, we need money for vaccines, and we need you to follow us because they need homes.”

To learn more about how to help, go to the Humane Society of the Delta’s Facebook page.

This story was originally published June 3, 2021 at 6:18 PM with the headline "Hazmat suits couldn’t block ‘burning’ smell of 100 cats in Arkansas home, rescuers say."