News Briefs for the Week of November 25, 2002
By Marcella Durand for Cat Facts
- Digging for Kitty Litter Turns Up Trouble
It looks like there's a bit of a cat-fight brewing out West. In Nevada, Native American tribal leaders, local officials, and residents are opposing a proposed clay mine for manufacturing -- what else? -- kitty litter.
Chicago-based Oil-Dri Corp., which manufactures Cat's Pride kitty litter, would like to dig the mine on federal land less than 10 miles from Reno. But in February the Washoe County Commission rejected Oil-Dri's request for a special permit to mine and process the clay at a plant to be built on county land. And the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony has asked Interior Secretary Gale Norton to safeguard the land.
Officials for Oil-Dri have filed a lawsuit in federal court, and federal lawyers haven't decided whether or not to take Oil-Dri's side. While we haven't heard from feline officials yet, we're sure they feel that digging kitty litter is best done far from human eyes.
- This Town Ain't Big Enough for the 11 of Us
Is it really possible to have too many cats? Well, apparently, Morris Township in New Jersey thinks so. This fall, the Board of Health for the township decreed that no more than 10 cats could live in one residence. In addition, animal control officers can impound any cat caught loitering outside who is not wearing a license tag, has injured a person, or has damaged property (does this mean our cats could be arrested for what they've done to our couches?). The unlucky kitties would be placed at St. Hubert's Animal Shelter in Madison, New Jersey, with a waiting period of seven days. If the owner doesn't show up within that time period, then the cat would either be put to death or made available for adoption.
Owners who already have more than 10 cats are exempt from the ruling. First-time violators receive a written warning, and for subsequent violations owners could receive fines from $50 to $500. Apparently, last August a rabid cat bit six people in a nearby town, but town officials say that the new rules are unrelated to the incident.
|
