Light a candle for Elsbeth, 5 month old kitten killed by South Orange.

It is so sad that ctrzaska can find nothing in his home town of Maplewood to pontificate about that he has to butt in to issues that largely pertain to South Orange. I believe that on Wall Street his actions are referred to as the arrogance of the irrelevant

Just to add some clarification on the Country Lakes Clinic as the place that animals are going.

This was a place used by Teddy, former ACO of East Orange. The staff told me that Dr. Griffith manages that shelter as well. They concur that it is a very bad place for animals to go. (the East Orange Dog Pound.) I worked on a South Orange hoarding rescue about 3 years ago with Sgt. Peterson of the NJSPCA, John Festa and our beloved former ACO, Dick Ash, all amicably. I was given the sweetest kitten trapped by John himself. I was to follow up with the cats that went with Teddy and they went to Country Lakes. When I called he said a couple had died in their cages and some had to be euthanized. I was horrified. But I took the rest into my rescue and the JAC took a few so the place and the vet have a history with me.

Who the hell kills a baby kitten!? How the hell do you live with yourself!? I am sick! :'( RIP sweet baby!

Meanwhile--I am taking care of some of these very rescues, including a healthy cute little calico girl just waiting for a home.

Bg9, I am glad you were not implying that. Too many people anonymously say those things. I've never hidden behind a screen name here and I won't now. I'm Dan Dietrich and I think someone made a mistake, but that's all it was, and no one should be fired or run out of town for it.

PeggyC said:
BG9, I did not see what you wrote as implying a kickback, merely paying someone to do a job, albeit an unpleasant one. Although in this case, you really have to ask all kinds of questions about how and why this happened.

Thank you.

We adopted two cats through MOL, Vespa in 2011 and Poppy last year. Both are happy. We try to adopt cats that are not kittens, realizing not being kittens they are harder to place.

https://maplewood.worldwebs.com/forums/discussion/id/107285-Please-consider-adopting-him

One would assume healthy kittens are given a chance to be adopted and because they are cute are often adopted. Now, it seems in SO they may not even be given a chance at adoption. Why?

irvingtonpirate said:
Who the hell kills a baby kitten!? How the hell do you live with yourself!? I am sick! :'( RIP sweet baby!

mff said:
Meanwhile--I am taking care of some of these very rescues, including a healthy cute little calico girl just waiting for a home.

Elsbeth would have been in a home, a happy kitten. Bastards !!!

ace789nj said:
Morganna, I applaud your efforts to be an advocate for animals. I've read your posts and appreciate the energy you put into this. What you've written here however is inaccurate, highly. I trust you are misinformed because the alternate would mean you chose to be deliberately misleading and disingenuous. I pray that isn't the case.
Irresponsible.

How do you know that what Morganna wrote is highly inaccurate? Were you involved in this debacle?

Having told us this, why not tell us the "truth" you claim to know.

festus said:
It is so sad that ctrzaska can find nothing in his home town of Maplewood to pontificate about that he has to butt in to issues that largely pertain to South Orange. I believe that on Wall Street his actions are referred to as the arrogance of the irrelevant

It is so sad that festus can hurl attacks from behind the cloak of a screenname regarding people he clearly knows nothing about. I believe that on Main Street his actions are referred to as the cowardice of the anonymous.

Genuinely sad are the waste and suffering caused by empty-headed human beings.

It's sad that such a useful tool is often rendered impotent by the ability of so many posters to quickly inject negativity into the discussions. Sigh, MOL, what a waste you've become.

I'll try to break down my original post.

1. I explained that I valued Morganna's efforts and online postings and that I was surprised by this one. I think that's a legitimate sentiment. There is only one reason to start a thread with such a title. Sensationalism. I happen to think there are better ways to get a point across and once you start throwing in lines like "……but little did I know that there was a killing field." The reader (myself at least) starts to lose the substance of what's being discussed and focus on the writer's emotion. I don't think it helps, especially if it's done on purpose.

2. My comments regarding inaccuracy are multi faceted. One, I challenge the assertion that South Orange is a killer. I certainly think the 'killing fields" comment is wrong. I have been in that house. I have issued summonses to the owner (not for this current situation). I am not a cat expert but some those animals were not fit for human interaction/companionship. From what I understand Elsbeth was feral and would not have been released for adoption. I understood that this cat was not in fact a kitten but approx 1yr old, this is contradicted by the report a few posts above and perhaps it is correct. (then again, the report itself is contradictory, it states 6 mos on the top but the narrative states "normal adult detention". Maybe I'm reading that wrong though) I also question the dates. We all know, as horrible as it may be, that some of these places only house an animal for a certain amount of time. if that time was up what are they to do? Again, I don't think So Orange should be labeled killers for this. This BTW is what happens when you don't have a well staffed, well managed, competent animal shelter. Still, I wouldn't place ay blame whatsoever on the town. Despite all of this, is it not plausible that some legitimate reason to put the cat down manifested during the time it was in the care of the Dr.?

3. Again, it's my opinion that it is irresponsible to start threads like this. The intent is to get folks riled up, I get it, but no good comes of it. You have people running to give some doctor bad reviews but what if there was some legitimate reason that the OP doesn't know about? You have folks demanding the termination of town employees, really? I agree with what CATS posted. Communication and trust. This thread does not lend itself towards that.

Against my better judgment I decided to engage on this thread, I try hard to stay away from MOL unless it's for the good. I refuse to believe that "South Orange" is in the practice of wantonly killing or allowing the killing of its animals. As for those of you who felt the need to 'call me out" on my silence. My apologies, my Saturday..Saturday, consisted of teaching a fitness class, taking my kids to tumbling, mowing a lawn (twice), pulling out a spa pump motor, fixing a hole in an RV roof, taking the kids to dinner and then Rita's. Dear gawd excuse me for having a life and not being glued to my mol home page, sheesh.

Festus, I'm not sure I read that right but I think you said I should be euthanized...is that correct? Who is it that spews venom?

Morganna, so that you understand where I'm coming from, I have fostered cats and found homes for them (MOL'ers). I refuse to support any shelters that are "kill" shelters. I would not ever advocate the harming of any animal. The information I have is either first hand observation or from the mouths of those we are supposed to trust. If you can prove to me that I am being outright lied to, I welcome further discussion. In private of course but minus the aggrandizement please. I think, more often than not, leaving emotion out of a discussion proves to be most useful.

+1

Thank you for responding, Ace. But I have to say I don't think you "know" any more than anyone else on this board who didn't actually participate in the events in question. And I doubt anyone took the comments about "killing fields" and SO being a "killer" literally.

In a case like this one, it's nearly impossible for the person closest to the facts to post without any emotion. I think it's pretty clear that something rather awful happened here that took Morganna completely by surprise. She is upset, and understandably so. And calling out a town or individuals is a way to draw attention to a highly questionable situation and get the right questions asked, maybe even change a policy or process. No one is lining up with torches and pitchforks just yet. We are just expressing dismay.

"We are just expressing dismay..." well, except for Festus, who did actually bring the venom and made it quite personal.

Here is the heart of the matter.

Elsbeth was examined, tested and vaccinated under Furry Hearts name , by me at Valley Vet. She was not feral, please call Valley Vet to confirm. I had Wizard and Dune also vaccinated and tested. We paid to neuter them as well. Their paperwork supports this and that they were taken into the rescue.

They were taken by Melanie Troncone to be temporarily cared for, I did not sign a surrender form.

Ms. Troncone took them to Country Lakes Vet Clinic. I called and checked on them and went to

see them.

I left my contact number. I thanked the vet for caring for them on the 16th Saturday and picked up Wizard with bigben. I was told by staff there that they posted on Petfinder. I later learned that at the same address is All Paws Welcome a rescue that claims to take in animals from local ACOs to avoid euthanasia.

Staff reported that 3 days later that they helped Dr. Kimani Griffith pack the cats in his private car. They thought they were being taken to Ms. Troncone or to us.

Cut to the chase, at Town Hall we were told by Ms. Troncone that she had surrendered all the cats to him but asked him to call and return them to us when necessary. I asked her to clarify that she had actually signed our cats over, and she did. She never mentioned this to the head of Furry Hearts, let alone to me. The cats left in a car from the vets office and were never seen again. We were told by John Festa that they were euthanized?

We never authorized them to be euthanized and we never signed them over.

It sounds less like a malicious act and more like a screw up in paperwork and communications. If Troncone signed over the animals in error, I wouldn't focus wrath on the Vet

NizhoniGrrrl said:
It sounds less like a malicious act and more like a screw up in paperwork and communications.

It is very upsetting that the cats were killed, but I have to agree with NizhoniGrrrl that it sounds more like a screw up rather than a purposeful act. And while I have never met South Orange's ACO from all that I have heard she goes out of her way to help animals, so I find it hard to believe that she would have willingly been a part of having healthy adoptable animals put down.

ace789nj said:
My apologies, my Saturday..Saturday, consisted of ... mowing a lawn (twice)

Just a suggestion, you might want to cut back on the fertilizer.

spontaneous said:

Just a suggestion, you might want to cut back on the fertilizer.

ha!

Bottom line for me: Elsbeth and others are dead for no good reason, no matter how it happened.

Elsbeth had a new home waiting for her; the others could have been taken out of Country Lakes and fostered at least short term. I had volunteered to foster and there were other fosters too.

It would have been so easy to save Elsbeth from being killed. One phone call.

We can do so much better for our animals than this. But we need to start by getting a local shelter so that the lines of communication are clear.

Morganna I agree and applaud what your trying to do but also think you came off a bit strong in your posts. Looking at this situation it seems there was a communication problem. Someone had to call the ACO ,she wouldn't just magically show up. And in doing that she took possession of the animals. As for a surrender form, were the cats yours? If there was a stray animal , I dont think the forms are applicable. I do agree with the cause but we dont have a no kill shelter. In fact the reason our shelter was closed was due to the large amount of animals that were accrued and couldn't be cared for.

Ace11, a quick glance at the paperwork posted earlier shows Elsbeth to be the property of Furry Hearts (FH). They were not strays. Here’s the Cliff Notes version of the pertinent parts (per your query) of Morganna’s post: Upon trapping, several of the cats were vetted and some even neutered...that afternoon. Morganna brought them home...that afternoon. The ACO, working with FH arrived at Morganna’s that evening and said she would hold them in her own garage. Morganna learned the following morning that the animals were taken to Country Lakes. Here’s a question to ask the ACO: At what point, if ever, did she give surrender forms to the owner (FH) or their representative (Morganna)? And here’s another, at what point did the ACO tell them she had surrendered their property? (I happen to know the answer to this: After the cats were dead. Full disclosure requires me to say I'm a good friend of Morganna's and while I wasn't as intimately involved in the rescue as she, I heard about it - ad nauseum???!!! - nearly in real time.)

As to your mentioning the former shelter, I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY don’t want to open that can of worms because it will surely cause this discussion to go off the rails.

I don’t see where anyone is citing malicious intent but the combination of a young, local rescue, overwhelmed by a tsunami of cat; a woefully inexperienced ACO; and a veterinarian proven in the past to have a questionable track record with cats from our community, resulted in the death of every cat brought there.

There are ongoing discussions in SOMA as to whether we need a shelter. Early this year Maplewood’s controversial solution was to fire the ACO and contract for animal control with Associate Humane Society in Newark, with talk about shared services with South Orange who, it was reported, was working on a RFP. At the time, South Orange was heralded as having a humane solution but the fate of Elsbeth and company suggests otherwise. If you’re on the side of “No Need for a Shelter”, please take a drive over to Puppy Love on Springfield Avenue and lighten their load by offering to foster or adopt a couple of the animals in their care because they ARE our de facto local shelter. If you’re on the other side, make yourself heard…call, email, write, or show up at a TC or BOT meeting and speak up or support those who do.

why would they load the cats in a car to euthanize them? wouldn't the vet euthanize them in his office?

The paperwork says the feline is from the horder house? Not property of fury hearts? How did fury hearts claim owerneship of the cats, did the owner of the horder house surender them or were they taken? If taken under whos authority? If signed over why call the ACO in? It wouldent be the towns responsibility to take care of some other organizations cats? I cant make out the whole thing. Anyway, I'll reiterate that someone, furry hearts or morgana had to call in the ACO for some reason. What was said in that conversation , I dont know.

I have plenty of animals, thank you. As for the shelter, I'm on neither of those sides. I belive we need a shelter but not a no kill shelter. The towns experement with a no kill shelter went horribibly wrong. It would have been more humane to euthanize them. I've never heard of a no kill shelter that worked. Eventually the number of animals taken in will outnumber the adopted ones leading us to the situation we had.

crazy_quilter said:
why would they load the cats in a car to euthanize them? wouldn't the vet euthanize them in his office?

Im hoping that he took them to freinds or family as he didn't foresee anyone comming to check on them. When questioned just said he euthinized them.

ace11 said:
Morganna I agree and applaud what your trying to do but also think you came off a bit strong in your posts. Looking at this situation it seems there was a communication problem. Someone had to call the ACO ,she wouldn't just magically show up. And in doing that she took possession of the animals. As for a surrender form, were the cats yours? If there was a stray animal , I dont think the forms are applicable. I do agree with the cause but we dont have a no kill shelter. In fact the reason our shelter was closed was due to the large amount of animals that were accrued and couldn't be cared for.

I'll try coming off "less strong."

I was strolling through 1 foot of animal waste, surrounded by bags of human waste, accompanied by my friends from Furry Hearts and their friend Melanie!

We as rescuers had been asked by a SO resident in foreclosure to save her cats. . Furry Hearts and Morgan Le Fay Cat Rescue both spoke to the woman. I personally reassured her we would save them.

Residents offered to foster, and vets offered to hold or vet the animals

Thanks go to Valley Vet, South Orange Animal Hospital and Millburn Animal Hospital and to everyone who is caring for these 45 or so, cats.

I took 3 from the house to Valley Vet to begin our vetting. They were paid for and under the name of Furry Hearts. I was told Melanie would pick them up to give them temporary foster.

The next day Melanie told the head of Furry Hearts that SO would board and vet as many as she wanted at Country Lakes Vet and all would be returned to us if they couldn't find homes.

I called more than once and I went to pick one up, with bigben and thank the vet myself, and said I would be back for the others.

The staff says a few days later they helped put them in the vet's car.

Then we were told at Town Hall that they were euthanized.

Still too strong?

You think I'm coming off too strong, someone with a similar handle thinks I'm coming off too emotional. I held the kitten, I found a home for her with a kind woman who has no legs. I feel very emotional and very strongly about the fact that 3 days after I picked up Wizard, and told the staff that we were going to pick up the others, she was taken away in a car and now I'm told that she is dead.

ace11 said:

crazy_quilter said:
why would they load the cats in a car to euthanize them? wouldn't the vet euthanize them in his office?

Im hoping that he took them to freinds or family as he didn't foresee anyone comming to check on them. When questioned just said he euthinized them.

Our health officer told us they were euthanized. There is a charge to the town when their animals are housed and one when they are euthanized.

Griffith is the manager of the East Orange Pound. No phone number posted a site with no animals posted it says only open by appointment. Staff thought he was taking them to Melanie or to us. He runs a non profit rescue at his practice, they state they rescue to avoid euthanasia. The staff was surprised that we did not have them. He would not tell them where he took them. With all the noise, he finally said he had euthanized them. I hate using a word which disguises what was done but I'm responding to the chiding that I am being too strong or too emotional. Cover you eyes now, here it comes. He admitted to killing them.

"Euthanize" means to allow a good death.

"Kill" means a cruel, unnecessary taking of life.

This is a terribly sad heart-rending tale. A few dedicated animal lovers have been pilloried by posters who had no involvement in trying to rescue this poor cat and seem to be trying to lay the blame everywhere but where it belongs. If South Orange had an animal rescue supported by donations and taxes, this never would have happened. If South Orange had an animal control officer who knew what he or she was doing, this never might have happened. If South Orange had someone on the Village payroll who understood this situation, this might not have happened. I am so sorry that the rescuers have been blamed for anything except having big hearts and a commitment to animals and I applaud and apologize to them.

Thanks for the English lesson, but euthanize is more appropriate as killing them sounds as if the vet tied them in a bag and through them in a river. There is a diffrence. But I digress,

It still sounds like there was a bit of miscommunication going on as you did pick up and house one kitten.

Morganna is coming on too strong?? The cats are dead, euthanized, put to death, put out of their misery, killed, gone to a better place, etc. A miscommunication? Really? I'm sorry--I thought you said you wanted the cats killed, not adopted. My bad.

Seeing some of the "reasonable" responses on this thread is why animal control is so horrible in this country. Innocent animals where killed for no reason, and people are arguing over which word to use to properly describe their deaths.

goober said:
This is a terribly sad heart-rending tale. A few dedicated animal lovers have been pilloried by posters who had no involvement in trying to rescue this poor cat and seem to be trying to lay the blame everywhere but where it belongs. If South Orange had an animal rescue supported by donations and taxes, this never would have happened. If South Orange had an animal control officer who knew what he or she was doing, this never might have happened. If South Orange had someone on the Village payroll who understood this situation, this might not have happened. I am so sorry that the rescuers have been blamed for anything except having big hearts and a commitment to animals and I applaud and apologize to them.

I didnt blame anyone, it sounds like a communication problum somewere. I do care about the cause and find what happened tragic.

Its a sad situation. Laying blame on the town is a cop out. The town didnt create the problum and I'm pretty sure there not in the kitten killing buissness. How would you propose south orange employ someone who specialises in hoarding? I dont get it?