More Than 3 Cats? Get a License

TODAY staff and wire
updated 2 hours, 37 minutes ago


How much feline is too much feline in the town of Dudley, Mass.?

The answer: If you have four of the furry four-legged friends without a special license, you've gone too far.

The town made it illegal this week to own more than three cats without getting a $50 residential kennel license.
Voters at a town meeting added language to a town bylaw that makes it illegal to own more than three cats
without the special license.

The change came in response to a neighborhood feud over the 15 cats owned by Mary Ellen Richards.

The Telegram & Gazette of Worcester reported that one neighbor claimed the cats have ruined his yard. Another
neighbor alleged that her 2-year-old daughter contracted Coxsackie virus, also known as hand-foot-and-mouth
disease, from a toy or ball that likely came into contact with cat feces.

Richards said all the cats in her care have received veterinary care and are up to date on all their shots. She works
with the organization Willy’s Kitty Angels Rescue, which traps feral and stray cats to control the population.
Richards takes cats to free clinics to have them spayed or neutered and helps them find foster homes in other
towns.

'Worst thing in my life to happen'

The town of Dudley has been fining Richards $100 a day for keeping more than three cats at her home, which she
has owned since 1997. She recently put her home up for sale, saying she plans to move to a "more cat-friendly
community."

"This is the worst thing in my life to happen, this whole thing," she told the Telegram & Gazette.

On the newspaper's Web site, readers' reactions to the news of the new feline limits ranged from enthusiastic
approval to scathing ridicule.

"When will we need licenses to have more than three children?" wrote a reader who identified herself as Cat
Mommy. "This is stupid. My cats live inside and don't bother anyone. Hope they can sleep at night knowing
that some lovely cats will be put to sleep or left outside in the cold now. Shame."

LINK

GUILTY!

Most municipalities have similar laws. The only way to get away from it is to live out in the country.

Yeah, it makes sense for city living. For me, it is an asset to have a "few" cats for rodent patrol......just turns out I make pets out of them all....well, except one.

Cats can get the pig flu.