The leader of an animal-rights group and a Prince Georges County resident are taking the county to court over its ban on feeding stray cats.
The complaint was filed July 9 in county circuit court by Upper Marlboro resident Sue Brown and Bowie resident Timothy Saffell, founder of Prince Georges Feral Friends. Feral Friends is a nonprofit organization based in Bowie that supports feeding, catching and neutering wild cats and allowing the animals to roam free.
County policy bans the feeding of stray domestic animals, which officials say can cause a public nuisance as the animals congregate in an area for food. People caught feeding stray cats can be issued a $150 fine per animal. People who feed, vaccinate and neuter stray cats are considered responsible for the ongoing care, licensing and oversight of the animals, said Rodney Taylor, associate director of the countys Animal Management Group.
We have good Samaritans who are trying to help the county by vaccinating these animals and spaying and neutering them, which the county has failed to do, Saffell said.
Taylor said issuing fines for feeding stray cats is a last resort.
We understand that they think they are doing a good thing, but if you have been feeding an animal, you are taking ownership of that animal, he said.
Every night, Brown said she takes out a paper plate of food, and the cats come running. Over the years, she said she has trapped cats that came to her house, took them to vets to be spayed or neutered and got some adopted. Brown said a neighbor complained two years ago, and she began receiving warning notices in the mail from the county. After two warnings, she said she received a $1,500 ticket for failing to license the cats she fed in fall 2008.
Brown was likely fined $100 for each animal and given $50 penalties for failing to license each animal, Taylor said.
I guess they thought every cat complaint in Marlton was mine, said Brown, who has refused to pay the fine. I feel like Im a law-abiding citizen. I dont see why they cant stay around.
County law says any domestic animal, including horses and cows, must be confined to an owners property, properly vaccinated and licensed. It costs $25 for a pet license or $5 if the animal is spayed or neutered.
The problem is, we get the complaints on both ends, Taylor said. We get the calls about cats running over cars, into flower beds and defecating. Then its a public nuisance.
People can ask for free traps to catch the animals and turn them over to the shelter, Taylor said.
Saffell said the cats should be free.
Were saying that they should be treated like any other wild animal, Saffell said. The county doesnt go after birds and squirrels.
Taylor said cats are not the same under state law, which lists them, along with dogs, as domesticated animals.
[Cats] are domestic animals; theyre just unsocialized, he said.
Taylor said he could not discuss the court case.