Nearly 140 cats were rescued Wednesday by the Pasadena Humane society in what officials are calling one of the largest rescues in the organization's history.
Officials say they got a tip from volunteers helping 62-year-old Tanya Regan of Temple City care for the animals. She usually went after midnight to feed them.
Officials said the animals were living in squalid conditions inside a small private storage space on Altadena Dr. near Colorado Blvd. The cats were inside crates, stacked on top of each other. Several dead cats were found outside in a freezer, the Star-News reported.
"This is the most cats we've ever impounded," Steve McNall, Pasadena Humane Society president and CEO, told the Star-News.
Regan was cited and released on her own recognizance. Society spokeswoman Ricky Whitman told the Star-News they will pursue animal cruelty and neglect charges.
Police obtained a search warrant for the structure as well as the woman's residence.
Neighbors reportedly complained about the stench but never saw any cats since the owner often entered the house at night.
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"I have never seen one single cat in the whole two years she's lived here," a neighbor who declined to be identified by name told the Star-News.
The Humane society removed the cats, which took more than 20 officers wearing gas masks. They were reported in to be in fair condition, suffering from eye and respiratory infections.
