Untold number of cats going to Libby Shelter

Animal control and animal shelter workers will be picking up dozens of cats to “get whatever we can get” on Friday morning due to a hoarding situation, according to the Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter in Libby.

Beth Wickward, a staffer at the Libby shelter, said they already have 16 cats and are sending up about 20 crates to get more. Some of those cats will be pregnant and the shelter is looking for people to foster those cats.

“They’re not cuddly pets for the most part,” she said. Some of them are reverting back to a feral state.

The shelter waives adoption fees on feral cats and looks for people who have a barn or a shop property, she said. Ideally, for those looking for mouse control without a cuddly cat.

Traps will be set to capture the really feral ones, she said. Though, the cats are used to getting fed enough, so hopefully crews will be able to collect a significant amount of them.

The shelter does not have the final number of cats they will be taking in, but it will a lot, she said. At around 4 to 6 months, cats can have litters and “it just snowballs really quickly.”

For the cats, being put in a carrier and moved is a stressful event, she said.

The shelter has to give all the cats a round of shots before they go off to people, an expense donations could help cover, she said.

Legend Gaither, office manager at the shelter’s Eureka branch, said they will take donations of cat food, kitten food and any sort of clumping cat litter. All money donations are tax deductible and can be made online through paypal at tobaccovalleyanimalshelter.com as well as on the shelter’s Facebook page.