Warren City council members considering cat limit

Warren City Council will vote on whether to limit the number of cats someone can have or take care of in an effort to lessen the stray cat problem. 

Councilwoman Honeya Price is spearheading the idea of an ordinance limiting the amount of cats to four because she said she sees multiple strays roaming the streets. 

“My biggest concern is health. If you have an epidemic of cats you’re going to have an epidemic of things that can go wrong with the cats,” Councilwoman Price said. 

Humane agents agree the problem has gotten worse. Most recently, they rescued almost 100 cats from a single home in Warren.

“[It’s] multiple houses, multiple neighborhoods and it's not just one city, there are multiple cities involved as well,” Fabian Pike, the Chief Humane Officer Trumbull County said. 

"Keeping many cats can be challenging for some people in Trumbull County. Without spay and neuter they can quickly multiply to an unmanageable number. ...This is unnecessary with the prevention of spay and neuter, vaccination and regular veterinary care," Corporal Lieutenant Carson who removed the animals said. 

But animal advocates are worried they will run into issues enforcing the law if it’s passed by council. 

“What do you do with people that already have multiple animals that are taken care of them?”Jason Cooke, the founder of Healthy Hearts and Paws asked. “We certainly don't want to punish them and theirs no where for any of those animals to go.

With the ordinance, Councilwoman Price suggested creating a mental health resource for the people who are caught caring for masses of animals. 

“You just don't want to take cats from someone or take dogs from someone. You want to also make sure that they're getting some type of treatment that maybe helped them overcome this situation,” Councilwoman Price said. 

Council is expected to vote on the ordinance next meeting.