Tacoma police say they recovered 60 cats and kittens from an abandoned 40-foot sailboat off Owen Beach after a six-day operation that began Aug. 6.
Officers from the department’s Marine Services Unit initially found more than 30 cats aboard the vessel in unsafe conditions, with many appearing frightened and malnourished, the Tacoma Police Department said. Marine Services coordinated with Animal Control and the department’s Forensics Unit to remove the animals, and the tally grew to 60 over the course of the operation, police said.
The department posted online, “That’s a wrap! The final cat is off the boat. Fur real this time! Final cat count: 60!” It added, “While we believe we have safely removed all of the cats from the boat, as any cat owner knows, cats are exceptionally good at hiding,” and said additional searches would continue under the authority of a search warrant, the department said. Marine Services has also begun the process of having the legally registered vessel moved, police said.
A private trapper, Camille Sutherland, told KING 5 she boarded the vessel overnight, captured two cats and took them to the Humane Society because she believed authorities were taking too long. The Tacoma Police Department told KING 5 that the unauthorized boarding complicated the investigation into the vessel’s owner, police said.
More than 40 of the cats were taken to the Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County, with the remaining animals placed in foster homes, KING 5 reported. Authorities have not announced any arrests or charges and asked the public to notify Animal Control if they spot another cat aboard the vessel. “PLEASE DO NOT BOARD THE VESSEL unless you are the legal owner,” the department warned online, according to police.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
