What started as a request to help 18 cats inside a Paterson home turned into a scramble to save 28, with homeowners facing an urgent move and a refuge racing the clock to get every animal out safely. The Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge said eight kittens pulled from the property arrived in rough shape, covered in fleas and parasites, and fighting respiratory and eye infections.
“What began as a call to help 18 cats in a Paterson home quickly escalated into an overwhelming animal welfare crisis with 28 cats urgently in need of rescue,” the refuge said, according to northjersey.com. The group added that with the homeowners facing an urgent move, time was running out to get the remaining cats to safety. As reported by News12 New Jersey, the 28 cats were rescued from the Paterson home after rescuers discovered far more animals needing immediate removal than the initial request had described.
Eight Kittens Arrive Needing Immediate Medical Care
RBARI immediately took in eight kittens that were in urgent need of care, the refuge said. Those young cats arrived covered in fleas, suffering from parasites, and battling respiratory and eye infections, according to the same account. Two of them, named Mia and Wallace, are fighting feline calicivirus and require intensive support care, including syringe feeding and nebulization, the refuge said.
The rescue situation is fluid at the moment and ongoing, the refuge said as efforts continued to reach the rest of the cats still inside the home. RBARI is continuing efforts to help the remaining cats but needs assistance from other rescue groups, adopters and donors, according to ABC7 New York. Donations will help cover medical treatment for the rescued kittens and support efforts to reach the cats still awaiting help, the station reported.
A Pattern of Overwhelmed Paterson Households
This is not the only Paterson case to overwhelm North Jersey's rescue network recently. A separate effort involving several area animal welfare groups and Paterson Animal Control worked to remove more than 120 cats and kittens from another home, according to Patch. In that case, Wayne-based FOWA Rescue said it had taken in more than 30 kittens, some needing incubators and feeding every two hours, the outlet reported, while Homeless Tails was described as leading the removal effort from the three-story home and seeking fosters and volunteers. RBARI estimated that dozens of cats still remained in that home, with rescue efforts continuing daily, per the same report.
Once the Paterson kittens are healthy, RBARI plans to rehabilitate all 28 cats from the latest case and eventually place them up for adoption. For now, the refuge's focus remains on stabilizing the sickest animals, including Mia and Wallace, while coordinating with other groups to reach the cats still waiting inside the home.
