STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. (WXYZ) — Neighbors in a Sterling Heights subdivision have watched first responders in hazmat gear going in and out of a home on Cavant Drive near 15 Mile and Ryan over the last few days, trying to round up several cats in a hoarding situation, neighbors say has been going on for years.
Calls about a large number of cats led animal control to the Cavant Drive home on Monday, where crews discovered deplorable conditions and a serious hoarding situation. Several cats, both alive and deceased, were found inside. First responders worked in full hazmat gear, and crews were seen being hosed down after exiting the home.
"Its crazy, whats been going on next door is crazy. The smell is filthy. I mean, you can smell it," next-door neighbor Sahar Zakar said.
Zakar said she has noticed the cats next door since moving into her Sterling Heights home 6 years ago, but the situation only got worse over time.
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"As years progressed, I noticed the numbers started piling up; that's when I began to see multiple cats. Black, gray, black and white," Zakar said.
Zakar said the smell from inside the home spread across the neighborhood, and cats were everywhere. Just last week, she found one of the cats living under her bed.
"How did you know the cat was in there?" I asked.
"I seen it in the middle of the night," Zakar said. "It jumped right over here to this side of the window trying to find a way out."
The woman living at the home was taken to the hospital. Sterling Heights Fire Department Interim Chief Michael Amormino said the department has a response team that includes social workers, but the next step is cleaning up the home and rescuing the cats.
"Sometimes the situation can be unlivable or so unsanitary that the patient, or the resident, shouldn't be living there in the first place," Amormino said.
Laura Wilhelm-Bruzek, director of Paws for the Cause Feral Cat Rescue, said the case brings to mind a recent case in Redford. With the summer heat, she said the cats need to be removed urgently.
"There are hoarding situations every year, unfortunately it feels like this year is extremely bad," Wilhelm-Bruzek said.
"The response time is most important, not just for the people involved but for the animals involved," Wilhelm-Bruzek said.
Zakar said the situation has taken a toll on the neighborhood.
"As a taxpayer and her neighbor, I should not have to be going through this, nobody should be going through this," Zakar said.
With traps set up in the backyard, neighbors hope the home is cleaned up quickly — though Amormino cautioned the process could take time.
"Every situation is different, some take hours some take days some take a couple months to get the situation under control," Amormino said.
"I hope this can be taken care of once and for all very very soon," Zakar said.
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