Following PETA Investigation and Seizure of Caboodle Ranch Cats, Group Calls for Withdrawal of Proposed Law Expected to Proliferate Hoarding
For Immediate Release:
February 29, 2012
Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382
Tallahassee, Fla. -- PETA will hold a news conference just days after an undercover investigation prompted Madison County law-enforcement officials to seize hundreds of cats from "no kill" cat "sanctuary" Caboodle Ranch, Inc., and call on Florida Rep. Joseph Abruzzo and Sen. Mike Bennett to withdraw the attractively named but sure-to-be harmful "Animal Rescue Act" (H.B. 597 and S.B. 818), the bill they sponsored that would force animal shelters to hand over animals to purported "rescues" like Caboodle. Pointing out that Caboodle is one of many recently busted hoarding "rescues," PETA will screen video footage from its five-month investigation, which found systemic and fatal neglect at exactly the kind of "rescue sanctuary" the bill would allow to thrive to the detriment of homeless animals:
When: Thursday, March 1, 12 noon
Where: Governors Inn, 209 S. Adams St., Tallahassee Room, Tallahassee
Florida-based animal protection agencies—including the Florida Animal Control Association, the Suncoast Humane Society, Tallahassee Animal Services, and Leon County Animal Control—have voiced opposition to the bill because of its expected impact on the welfare of animals and the state's existing budgets. If passed, the act is expected to increase disease transmission, lead to overcrowding, and result in animals warehoused at facilities like Caboodle.
"PETA's investigation of Caboodle Ranch shows exactly why Florida's 'Animal Rescue Act' is dangerous and irresponsible," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "Animal shelters will have no choice but to hand animals over to self-proclaimed 'sanctuaries'—a surefire way to sentence unwanted dogs and cats to a lifetime of neglect and suffering at the hands of hoarders."
PETA's video footage of Caboodle shows cats suffering from severe respiratory infections and gasping for air as mucus drips from their noses, cats covered with flies and confined to areas littered with vomit and waste, and maggots crawling in areas in which medical supplies were stored. Craig Grant, Caboodle's founder and operator, was arrested and charged with felony cruelty to animals on Monday.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.