Beaches house overrun by cats gets long-awaited cleanup
Posted September 25, 2013 4:22 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The outside of a house overrun by cats on a quiet Beaches street was cleaned up Wednesday.
In a CityNews story last week, neighbours said they were desperate to escape the putrid smell of cat excrement emanating from the property, located near Kingston Road.
Dozens of ravenously hungry cats had overwhelmed the inside, and outside, of the house, prompting CityNews reporter Cynthia Mulligan to liken the smell to a “giant kitty litter box that hasn’t been changed in months.”
Area residents took matters into their own hands, trapping a total of 43 felines and handing them over to animal control, which will have them spayed, neutered, and released back into feral colonies.
That may have significantly pared down the cat population, but the mess and smell remained.
After what neighbours described as years of neglect, the issue was finally addressed Wednesday morning when a phalanx of agencies descended on the home.
The street was closed down as fire, police, animal services, the OSPCA, and four junk removal trucks showed up to begin the long-awaited cleanup.
Cats were a large part of the problem, but the property was also littered with years of accumulated junk and debris that was hauled away.
The cleanup initiative, which came after Beaches-East York Coun. Mary-Margaret McMahon arranged a meeting with the agencies, was more than welcomed by neighbours.
Neil, who lives with his wife in the semi that’s attached to the house, called it “a miracle.”
The couple told CityNews last week that they had been futilely complaining about the conditions of the home for years, and were forced to stockpile air fresheners and avoid their own backyard to deal with the smell.
Numerous cats, however, remain inside the home.
The OSPCA says it can’t legally enter the residence at this time.
The home’s owner, a woman in her 50s believed to suffer from mental health issues, is away and hasn’t been heard from in a few days.
The city is currently trying to gain legal approval to enter the home.
