Justice for Linda Johnson's 96 Cats
- by: sharon berry
- recipient: Jerry Kilgore, Virginia State Attorney General, Virginia State Attorney General
Please release Linda Johnson's 96 cats to local rescue organizations to be adopted to permanent, loving homes. Release ferals to local animal rescue groups to caretake.
Attorney General
Jerry Kilgore
900 East Main Street
Richmond, VA 23219
(804) 786-2071
mail@oag.state.va.us
February 8, 2004
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
On January 25, 2004, Linda Johnson of Candlewood Drive was met at the front door by Virginia Beach Animal Control officers. They had a warrant based on a complaint by a previous adopter who had returned her kitten a few days ago because he was sick. (this kitten was in excellent condition when she left Linda Johnson's home originally.) The new owner did not bother to take the kitten to the vet before bringing him back to Linda Johnson. Linda Johnson took the kitten back but refused to trade another kitten for him (obviously, the woman had already shown that she would NOT take care of the animal properly) and, because Linda Johnson now had to take on the cost of getting this kitten healthy, she opted not to return the adopter's adoption donation. To which the adopter, Gloria Foerst snapped, "I'll get you for this". She sure did. Big time.
This is a blatant case of revenge for a perceived slight against Gloria Foerst. As a rescuer myself, it is part of our mandate to make sure that a kitten or cat is adopted to a safe, permanent, loving, and responsible home. We all do our best to ensure this. We have questionnaires designed to elicit information that would tell us whether that the person standing in front of us wishing to adopt one of our precious felines is appropriate or not. Then we have them sign a legal contract detailing exactly what is expected of them and what our rescue organization is liable for. If we get a "gut feeling" that something isn't right, we act on it and decline the approval of the adoption. Based on what I know about Linda Johnson from friends in the community and what I have read about her in the paper, it sounds to me like she behaved in a perfectly logical fashion to ensure that:
A) The kitten was returned to her (Linda Johnson's) home if it was no longer wanted.
B) No trade was allowed since the adopter in question, Gloria Foerst, had demonstrated she did not have her current kitten's welfare in mind since she refused to get it treated at a vet before returning it, and was obviously not a good candidate to adopt another feline to.
C) Linda Johnson declined to return the adoption fee based on a judgment that she would need those funds to treat the kitten that had been returned to her in a sick condition.
Having been involved in a Rescue organization for roughly two years and participating regularly in screening and adopting out rescued felines, I can find no fault whatsoever in Linda Johnson's judgment or handling of this difficult situation. She went by standard rescue guidelines that most legitimate rescue groups utilize to facilitate a good match between felines and potential adopters. Yet, Virginia Beach Animal Control acted on a formal complaint by an angry adopter and took 96 cats out of Linda Johnson's house with a snarepole, refusing to let her assist them with the rounding up process. Linda Johnson was in compliance with every animal ordinance in the city of Virginia Beach and had extensive medical records on every animal living in her home. She had rabies tags for every animal and city licenses. She had 2 cattery licenses which made it legal for her to have 96 cats residing in her home. Now her animals are sitting in Virginia Beach Animal Control, scared to death and being exposed to everything that is currently floating around in that facility:
Upper Respiratory Virus
Feline Leukemia Virus (Fatal)
FIP Virus (Fatal)
FIV Virus (Fatal)
The community is anxiously awaiting to see what these animals' fate will be since the case in question has been appealed. Hopefully, the appellate court/judge will see the injustice that has been perpetrated here and rule in favor of returning the animals to Linda Johnson. If, however, that is not the case, we are appealing to your sense of justice to ensure that the adoptable animals sitting in Virginia Beach Animal Control are put up for adoption, and if not adopted, released to local Animal Rescue groups that will make room for them and ensure they are adopted to loving homes. We are also requesting that the feral cats that were seized be released to local Animal Rescue organizations where they will be placed in a safe, clean, healthy environment where they can live out the duration of their lives in peace and quiet. Remember, feral cats are created by human beings that throw their pets out on the street without neutering or spaying them. They breed with other stray animals that people have "disposed" of and feral cat populations are increased. This is not the felines' fault. Please do not make them pay the ultimate price of euthanasia because uncaring humans created this situation. Please do not make Linda Johnson's feral cats pay that price. We are asking you to look into your hearts and souls and make the right decision here. It is our duty as decent human beings to make sure that the less fortunate and most vulnerable among us is protected and cared for as humanely as possible. Thank you for time and effort to ensure that this will happen.
Sincerely,
Sharon Berry
Concerned Citizen and Rescuer
Sign PetitionSign PetitionJerry Kilgore
900 East Main Street
Richmond, VA 23219
(804) 786-2071
mail@oag.state.va.us
February 8, 2004
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
On January 25, 2004, Linda Johnson of Candlewood Drive was met at the front door by Virginia Beach Animal Control officers. They had a warrant based on a complaint by a previous adopter who had returned her kitten a few days ago because he was sick. (this kitten was in excellent condition when she left Linda Johnson's home originally.) The new owner did not bother to take the kitten to the vet before bringing him back to Linda Johnson. Linda Johnson took the kitten back but refused to trade another kitten for him (obviously, the woman had already shown that she would NOT take care of the animal properly) and, because Linda Johnson now had to take on the cost of getting this kitten healthy, she opted not to return the adopter's adoption donation. To which the adopter, Gloria Foerst snapped, "I'll get you for this". She sure did. Big time.
This is a blatant case of revenge for a perceived slight against Gloria Foerst. As a rescuer myself, it is part of our mandate to make sure that a kitten or cat is adopted to a safe, permanent, loving, and responsible home. We all do our best to ensure this. We have questionnaires designed to elicit information that would tell us whether that the person standing in front of us wishing to adopt one of our precious felines is appropriate or not. Then we have them sign a legal contract detailing exactly what is expected of them and what our rescue organization is liable for. If we get a "gut feeling" that something isn't right, we act on it and decline the approval of the adoption. Based on what I know about Linda Johnson from friends in the community and what I have read about her in the paper, it sounds to me like she behaved in a perfectly logical fashion to ensure that:
A) The kitten was returned to her (Linda Johnson's) home if it was no longer wanted.
B) No trade was allowed since the adopter in question, Gloria Foerst, had demonstrated she did not have her current kitten's welfare in mind since she refused to get it treated at a vet before returning it, and was obviously not a good candidate to adopt another feline to.
C) Linda Johnson declined to return the adoption fee based on a judgment that she would need those funds to treat the kitten that had been returned to her in a sick condition.
Having been involved in a Rescue organization for roughly two years and participating regularly in screening and adopting out rescued felines, I can find no fault whatsoever in Linda Johnson's judgment or handling of this difficult situation. She went by standard rescue guidelines that most legitimate rescue groups utilize to facilitate a good match between felines and potential adopters. Yet, Virginia Beach Animal Control acted on a formal complaint by an angry adopter and took 96 cats out of Linda Johnson's house with a snarepole, refusing to let her assist them with the rounding up process. Linda Johnson was in compliance with every animal ordinance in the city of Virginia Beach and had extensive medical records on every animal living in her home. She had rabies tags for every animal and city licenses. She had 2 cattery licenses which made it legal for her to have 96 cats residing in her home. Now her animals are sitting in Virginia Beach Animal Control, scared to death and being exposed to everything that is currently floating around in that facility:
Upper Respiratory Virus
Feline Leukemia Virus (Fatal)
FIP Virus (Fatal)
FIV Virus (Fatal)
The community is anxiously awaiting to see what these animals' fate will be since the case in question has been appealed. Hopefully, the appellate court/judge will see the injustice that has been perpetrated here and rule in favor of returning the animals to Linda Johnson. If, however, that is not the case, we are appealing to your sense of justice to ensure that the adoptable animals sitting in Virginia Beach Animal Control are put up for adoption, and if not adopted, released to local Animal Rescue groups that will make room for them and ensure they are adopted to loving homes. We are also requesting that the feral cats that were seized be released to local Animal Rescue organizations where they will be placed in a safe, clean, healthy environment where they can live out the duration of their lives in peace and quiet. Remember, feral cats are created by human beings that throw their pets out on the street without neutering or spaying them. They breed with other stray animals that people have "disposed" of and feral cat populations are increased. This is not the felines' fault. Please do not make them pay the ultimate price of euthanasia because uncaring humans created this situation. Please do not make Linda Johnson's feral cats pay that price. We are asking you to look into your hearts and souls and make the right decision here. It is our duty as decent human beings to make sure that the less fortunate and most vulnerable among us is protected and cared for as humanely as possible. Thank you for time and effort to ensure that this will happen.
Sincerely,
Sharon Berry
Concerned Citizen and Rescuer
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