Animal abandonment is a problem in county

Sometime during the week of Sept. 21 a mother cat and her four kittens were abandoned in the vicinity of French Creek Road in Clayton. All of the cats are long-haired and were wearing light green flea collars. The mother is black. Two of the kittens are black and white, and two are black/silver/white tigers. Had they been able to survive in the wild (highly unlikely), they would have been doomed to a horrible death by strangulation. Please, if you know who abandoned these cats, report it to the police.

Article 26 of the Agriculture and Markets Law, Section 355, addresses abandonment of animals: "A person being the owner or possessor, or having charge or custody of an animal, who abandons such animal, or leaves it to die in the street, road or public place, or who allows such animal, if it becomes disabled, to lie in a public street, road or public place for more than three hours, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than $1,000, or by both."

If you see animal abandonment or abuse, please do the right thing and report it. There's a huge animal abandonment problem in Jefferson County. Please do not adopt a pet if you are not planning on giving it a lifetime home, or can't afford to provide food and proper veterinary care. If you do adopt a pet, the responsible thing to do would be to have it spayed/neutered and vaccinated.

Paula Bender

Cape Vincent