Pamela Arrington and Garriet Cox are facing charges of animal cruelty after 200 cats were rescued from their home on Bird River Road in Middle River, Maryland. Arrington and Cox owned "Colony Cats of Bird River and Beyond" and provided adoption services and was a charitable organization in 2018. While they housed large numbers of cats, they did not have a holding facility license from Baltimore County Animal Services. They were listed to the IRS as a non-profit organization. 

An investigation was launched in September when Maryland SPCA reported Arrington for the conditions the cats were brought in to the clinic. SPCA sent a letter to Baltimore County Animal Services (BCAS) regarding the "foul, indescribable odor" that both the cats and Pamela had. The odor of the home could be smelt from the street. 

September 24th, officers came to the property and searched the garage. Officers were met with "very high levels of urine smell and ammonia". One officer's nose and eyes started to burn and he had trouble speaking while in the garage. 

The garage had a small opening to provide ventilation with air purifiers. The garage was lined with dog crates, a cat condo, traps and transfer cages. Each cage had cats in them, some with two to five cats in one cage. The cages and litter boxes hadn't been cleaned and some cats either had no water in their bowls or no bowls at all. When officers passed the cages, they "began to spastically thrash around the cage and climb the walls". This is indicative of animals experiencing starvation.  

Baltimore County Fire Department were able to remove 30 cages from the garage. In total, there were 76 cats in the 30 cages. 

The veterinarian on-site determined that approximately half of the cats were suffering from conjunctivitis infections, leukemia, ulcers and upper respiratory infections. After the cats were removed, a Styrofoam box was found and it contained a deceased cat. The container was not sealed so disease was not prevented from spreading. That day, officers were able to remove 76 live cats and 15 deceased cats from the garage and shed. 

Another search warrant was conducted on October 17th. When officers searched the home, they were hit with the odor of animal feces and urine. The kitchen floor and counters were littered with feces and trash. The carpet in the living room was stained with animal waste. There were approximately 10-15 animal cages that contained a large number of cats in them. About 30 cats were loose in the room. 

The master bedroom was so dirty, it was impossible to walk freely. The detective reported of crates that contained two mixed breed dogs as well as cats roaming freely among the debris. 

"Almost all of the cages had litter boxes that were overflowing with feces and water and food bowls that were empty or contained fluids that appeared to be a mixture of urine, food and feces." 

It is reported that in the upstairs loft area, there were approximately 25 cages with an additional 20 cats. There was a smaller cage designed for a rodent and a heavily decomposed small animal. 

Their search also found 15 dead cats, some in styrofoam boxes that had been on top of cages of live cats. Some of the deceased cats were found in the kitchen freezer. 

In total, officers rescued and found 144 live cats, 74 deceased cats, two dogs and a bird from the property. Even after the live cats were rescued, some passed because of the conditions they went through. Baltimore County Animal Shelter has taken in all the cats and their resources are exhausted. 

Please consider donating, adopting or volunteering at Baltimore County Animal Services (BCAS) in Baldwin, MD. 

Baltimore County Police Cpl. Shawn Vinson stated that Pamela Arrington and Garriet Cox are suing police in an effort to have some of the animals returned, even after the conditions these animals have been through. 

There are two cases Arrington and Cox are involved in, one being civil and the other being criminal. The criminal case will be held at Baltimore County Circuit Court on December 9th, 2019 at 9:30am in the Assignment- Criminal Admin room. 

The second case is a civil/replevin case against BCAS. This will be held at District Court of Baltimore County on January 10th, 2020 at 9:00am and the second trial date will be on Febuary 28th, 2020 at 1:30pm in Courtroom 3.

Lets make sure Arrington and Cox get punishment for what they did and make sure they will never own another animal again! Justice for the animals that suffered because of them!