DANIA BEACH, Fla. – Dozens of cats have been found living in deplorable conditions in Broward County.
Authorities uncovered the horrific case of animal hoarding in Dania Beach, and it led to a second suspect being busted for the same thing just a few doors down.
A total of 71 cats were seized on Friday at a mobile home in Deerfield Beach.
“I think it would be really hard for anybody to care for 71 animals of any type,” Emily Woods, the director of Broward’s animal care division, said. “You kind of need some help.”
Noon report:
On Monday, new video showed the conditions of the cats at Broward’s animal adoption center.
Officials said the vast majority of the cats seized from that house were suffering from respiratory issues. While one of them had to be euthanized, they hope to pout the rest up for adoption, once they finish their treatments.
The stench was so bad inside it caused some Broward County Sheriff’s deputies to gag.
A group of cat lovers are now making accusations against the woman who hoarded the cats.
“The small was so bad, we all almost vomited,” said cat activist Maggie Maillet.
Earlier report:
Maillet and fellow advocate Diana Salcido participate in trap, neuter and release programs online for feral cats.
They claim they started noticing Facebook posts about a year ago from Nicole Dupras.
She would ask for donations for cats she had rescued.
“She would raise thousands of dollars, not only for vet bills, she would post up, oh, my car is broken down, I need help with my car, my repairs,” Maillet said.
Alba San Lucas helped Dupras with her cat rescue operation. She refutes the claims made by the two women, saying that her friend and fellow cat lover fell ill recently and couldn’t properly care for the cats she had taken in.
“She’s on dialysis,” said San Lucas. “I know the dialysis wipes her out, I guess.”
The two women now are launching allegations against San Lucas, saying she also hordes cats at her Dania Beach home in two trailers behind her house.
Animal Control did visit San Lucas’ home on Sunday and did not remove any cats, though she would not tell Local 10 News exactly how many she has in there.
For details on how to adopt one of these cats, visit Broward Animal Service’s website by clicking here.