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Animal control officers seized 23 cats and charged a Manassas-area woman with six counts of animal cruelty after a Scottish-fold kitten in her care had to be euthanized due to mistreatment, according to police.
A local veterinarian contacted police Feb. 25 after a 2-month-old kitten “was brought to the office in extremely poor condition and then discharged against medical advice the following day,” Prince William County police Master Officer Renee Carr said in a news release.
Further investigation revealed the owner of the kitten, 51-year-old Svetlana Mironva Caulfield, was providing inadequate care for nearly two dozen other Scottish Fold-type cats inside her home in the 7800 block of Howard Street in the Yorkshire area, Carr said. Detectives discovered the owner was giving the cats prescription medications that were out of date and prescribed to other cats.
“The living conditions inside the home were unsafe and officers initially seized eight cats from the home,” Carr said.
A short time later, officers received additional information that all of the cats required medical treatment and in total 23 cats were seized from the house, according to police.
Based on the evaluation of the initial kitten and due to his deteriorating condition, the determination was made to humanely euthanize, Carr said.
The other 22 cats received medical care and have all since been adopted.
Caulfield was arrested May 10 and charged with one count of felony animal cruelty and five counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty, Carr said. A court date is pending.
