The Bucks County SPCA removed 67 cats from a Bensalem shelter accused of neglecting the pets. Many of the cats are extremely sick and two kittens have died, the SPCA said. 

The owner of Cats Bridge to Rescue will face animal cruelty and neglect charges, the SPCA said in a Facebook post. The SPCA took the cats from the Bensalem shelter after a warrant was served Wednesday by authorities. They were transported to the SPCA’s Lahaska Shelter in New Hope to receive medical treatment.  

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The SPCA said Cats Bridge to Rescue housed the animals in “awful conditions,” adding that many are “sick and extremely thin and suffering from upper respiratory infections, severe diarrhea and covered in fleas and ear mites.” 

“Some cats were confined in filthy cages, others were free roaming,” the SPCA wrote in its post. “The large room was filled with trash and animal waste and smelled strongly of urine. Flies and fleas were visible throughout the facility.”

Two kittens died from panleukopenia, a highly contagious viral infection that spreads through feces and body fluids, the SPCA said. Another cat was found to have feline immunodeficiency virus, an infection that attacks the immune system and often is spread through bite wounds.

“The conditions of the animals and the facility indicate that these cats suffered from long-term lack of sanitation and proper veterinary care,” the SPCA said. 

Cindy Kelly, director of communications with the Bucks County SPCA, said the cats have been placed in clean enclosures as they recover. As of Thursday afternoon, most have been fed and are receiving medical treatment. At some point Thursday, 15 of the cats will be transferred to the Women’s Animal Center in Bensalem.

When they are healthy, the cats will be placed up for adoption. During October, the SPCA is waiving cat adoption fees. 

Cats Bridge to Rescue, a nonprofit that opened in 2009, planned to close its shelter at the end of October and was searching for homes for its remaining cats, 6ABC reported. Once medical exams on all of the rescued animals are complete, charges will be filed against the shelter owners, Kelly said. 

Pennsylvania regulates dog shelters by inspecting the condition of kennels and the health of their animals on an annual basis, but does not do so for cats. The SPCA said this case of alleged animal cruelty should serve as a call-to-action for state lawmakers to regulate cat shelters similarly. 

“There are too many times where people that are trying to run a cat rescue end up with more animals than they can humanely manage,” Kelly said. “Our desire is that those groups would be licensed and regulated, just as we do for dogs, so that situations can be checked on annually and find a solution before people get into trouble.”

Cats Bridge to Rescue did not respond to a request for comment. 

This story has been updated to include comment from the Bucks County SPCA.