It's great you've been able to rehome some and bring some in as your own.

@RavenCT Not only is it a good thing to do, but it also makes our lives better for their being with us.

You are wonderful
Signed petition

@Ray13 Thanks!

@RavenCT: I think part of the problem is too many people getting pets, especially cats, that they really are not suitable for. They don't get them fixed from reproducing, and eventually don't want them. The feline sanctuary I volunteer at has their contact as their phone # and a p.o. address. The owner/operator said if she gave out the sanctuary's location people would be dropping cats off in buckets! They have 65 cats now, which is their limit until they get some adopted.

@Ray13 Every cat I've ever brought home came from a rescue.

And I once had to trap some feral kittens in my yard. It was heartbreaking. (The mother kitty too). A local rescue helped with traps etc. and a helpful Vet.
They helped with education and then with everything after the trapping - placing the mother cat in a feral colony - and found homes for the kittens that survived. (Some were very ill). It was a kindness to get them to the vet.

I fed them til I had them all trapped btw.

People who drop pets off are heartless. I don't understand the mentality. There are shelters you can surrender to. Always.

My avatar cat Heath? He was dumped in a box with his kitten siblings in a package store dumpster in January. A store employee found them after a good exposure to New England cold. They all survived.

I'll push TNR and spay/neuter on anyone who'll listen. (As you can tell).

Good for you helping out at a sanctuary. I know I'd have way too many cats if I attempted that. Maybe someday I'll have the willpower?

@RavenCT :It is very hard sometimes to see the poor cats that they get in. Not long ago we had one that had been mauled by a dog, lost one eye and leg. Happily he was adopted by someone within a week.

@Ray13 happy endings to bad beginnings seems to be the motto of every shelter I've been to.
Thankfully most of the cats don't hold long grudges.

Though I do have one that hates to be picked up - I think he associates it with pilling etc.. Otherwise he became a cuddly bugger about 1 1/2 years after adoption. He just needed consistency.

Thank you. Her age, 79,should be a factor, too. From what I read her husband died in 2017 and the cats helped keep her from being so lonely. Never saw anything about how many cats were involved, but 22 is excessive. I've heard cases where someone is known for looking after strays, word gets around - and people drop their 'unwanted pets' off near that person's home.

@Ray13 Yes exactly! The story is unclear. One petition though is asking for help. Apparently Animal Welfare won't help and neither will any TNR programs probably all hogtied by the city's approach. (It would be illegal to help possibly).

I saw a photo of her living room in one of the petitions it looked perfectly clean. I suspect she has outside kitties she's feeding - the neighbors (and city officials) are upset - and there's no one willing to step in and help. (That's my best guess). I'd like to hear a clear telling of this story.

No wonder the world is the way it is. I've been putting food out for wild birds...maybe I should check to see if that's illegal.

@Ray13 We are allowed to put out food for birds...however...if your feeder attracts bears, then you can be cited to stop since it could be baiting or encouraging predatory wildlife...many of the laws are made due to a few odd things that happen and everyone is subjected to the idiocy.....

@thinktwice Thanks for the info. Have an occasional raccoon or possum show up, but no bears in my area.

@Ray13 Here in the Astoria-Warrenton area it is illegal to feed any of the wildlife. I see boxes of apples for deer, but other than that many comply. What was happening was people would give wildlife stuff that was bad for them and there was no other way to deal with the problem. However, it seems that if one is caught feeding the bird's bird food, nothing will be done.

@dalefvictor I know they don't want to make animals dependent on humans or to become a nuisance...it is a fine line since we humans take up their natural resources and mess with their food and water sources...we have neighbors that put out 20 bird feeders and then rip out the underbrush in the woods where they nest...I know they mean well, but they truly are ignorant of nature and the harm they are inadvertently doing...fine line...

@dalefvictor : I feed the birds strictly bagged wild bird feed, so no worry here. I've known some people to throw unwanted human food out for animals which, when the animals don't eat it, it becomes garbage in their yard. Pretty disgusting.

Asinine.

Too bad they can't find the people who had these cats and didn't want/or care for them. They're the ones that should be in trouble.

My thoughts, exactly.

@Ray13 Animals deserve to eat too, & if they are being helped to get their food, then so what?

@Lilac-Jade : I feed a stray cat about ten years ago. I asked around the neighbourhood whose cat it was and finally discovered he had been left behind by a college student that moved. I eventually took him in, named him Napoleon, and kept him for 8 years until he died from diabetes. Point is, if it had been illegal to feed him, he probably would have been killed by a car or succumbed to the cold weather. Probably the most affection ant cat I ever had.

@Ray13 Exactly.