Dog removed from LI home, cats stay

When Bruce Wilson's girlfriend moved out of the Holtsville house they rented, he said, she left him with one dog, four cats and a stack of unpaid bills. Three years passed. The dog got sick. The cats and the bills multiplied.

But earlier this month, after he was laid off from his job at Active Door and Window and could no longer afford the rent on the house, he left it -- and the animals -- calling police a week ago to report dangerous conditions inside.

Officers with the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals visited in Hazmat suits Sunday morning, said department chief Roy Gross.

"There were very strong odors coming from the home," Gross said. The dog, named Sammy, was taken to Brookhaven Animal Shelter, where it will be given a medical examination before authorities decide what to do with it. The officers opened windows and left feeding stations for the cats. "At this time, no charges are anticipated against the [pets'] owner," Gross said.

"Where was I going to take them?" asked Wilson, who has been staying in Patchogue motels since moving out. "Right now, I'm technically homeless and I have no vehicle. . . . I tried to do the best I could."

By the time Wilson moved out, about 20 cats had taken over the bedroom and foyer of the house, he said. He fed them daily and removed their waste every couple of days, but fell behind after he got sick.

"He did the right thing by bringing it to our attention, but it shouldn't get to the point where it's out of hand," said Gross, who said the SPCA could have referred Wilson to 10 animal shelters on Long Island.

Wilson said he'd called some of those shelters in the past, only to be told they had no space for cats.

"I feel terribly guilty," he said. "This was absolutely my last resort."