The 73 cats rescued from a North Huntingdon home in 2020 have been dwelling in a state of distress, in keeping with Becky Morrow, medical director and president of Frankie’s Friends.
Rescuers discovered the stays of 9 cats on the Leger Road property and so they have been capable of save 65 of the 73 felines, she mentioned. Most of the animals have been in a state of hunger.
“These cats were at a point where they had to consume one another,” she mentioned.
Matthew B. Jacobs, 47, pleaded responsible Tuesday to 25 felony counts of aggravated cruelty to animals. He entered the final plea as an alternative of a nonjury trial, which was scheduled to begin Tuesday.
Police have been looking for Jacobs in August 2020 on an unrelated warrant and once they arrived at his home, they seen flies across the entrance door and a robust ammonia odor, in keeping with courtroom papers. When police discovered Jacobs elsewhere, he instructed them he had stopped staying at his home as a result of it was overrun with cats.
The felines have been rescued by the New Kensington-based organization in September 2020. Jacobs was arrested the next month.
The cats have been infested with fleas and rescuers additionally have been bitten by the bugs, Morrow mentioned. There wasn’t any meals for the felines and a few died due to sicknesses.
“Even with the best care … we still couldn’t save them all,” she mentioned.
Morrow adopted one of many cats. The organization plans to hunt restitution and Morrow mentioned she is going to itemize the prices the rescue incurred caring for the cats. Jacobs will probably be sentenced at a later date.
More than 400 counts have been dismissed by prosecutors as a part of the plea, mentioned Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Ranger. In future animal cruelty-related circumstances, investigators are being requested to restrict the variety of offenses with which they cost an offender so the case is extra manageable and never cumbersome or taxing on the courtroom system, in keeping with District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Melanie Jones.
Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review employees author. You can contact Renatta by e-mail at [email protected] or by way of Twitter .
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