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but, more than likely, all it will do is come pick up the animal and eventually have it put to sleep.
there was a cat in the basement of the building that i moved into. it was very skinny, and whoever was caring for it would pop the top off a can of friskies and set it down on the floor, with an algae covered bowl of water. in the corner was a cardboard box of what was supposed to be some kind of cat litter.
the cat could never get all the food out of the can, and the litter was changed - maybe - once a week. it was almost always a mess, with cat urine running all over the floor.
i immediately started feeding her wet and dry food daily, and gave her a real litter box with scoopable litter, which i cleaned every single day. at first she was very skittish, but every morning when i when down to care for her, i would sit in a chair, pick her up and hug her, talking to her in a low, comforting voice. it took a while, but she got to where she would actually purr. she had probably not purred out of affection in many years.
there was an office in the basement that, strangely enough, had nothing to do with our building, but i asked one of the ladies who worked in it where it came from and who cared for it.
she said that they found it as a small kitten locked up in an apartment who's tenant had been evicted. they thought if they brought it here, someone would take it in. no one ever did. they cared for it (the other lady was allergic to cats, so would have nothing to do with it).
a complicating factor was that the cat would follow building workers into some of the rooms in the basement, and they would leave the room without making sure the cat was out.
i would go down to feed it and find it meowing from behind a locked door. this happened frequently in cold weather (those rooms were warmer), and sometimes over holiday weekends.
i was furious. they blamed the cat for going into the rooms. she would sometimes be locked up for four days without food, water, or litter box. all i could do was try to shove a little food and water under the door to it.
i called animal control and their response was "put it in a box and we will come get it". i asked them if they would speak to the people involved, and they said no, they would just come pick up the cat. they did say if they confirmed that the cat was being "abused", someone would be arrested.
if she was picked up, the cat was so old, and due to her living conditions, had no habit of using a litter box, no one would take her. so of course she would be put to sleep.
i continued doing all i could.
just before christmas she became very sick. i left a note for the people in the office saying she needed to go to a vet. that person left a note on my door saying she had her own children to care for, and if i wanted to take her to a vet, i could.
so i ended up having to take her to a vet. i could not afford a huge medical bill (last one was for one of my own cats, and after over a $1000, and they still didn't find out what was wrong - another story entirely), so i had her put to sleep.
i felt terrible, i was crying in the vet's office (i'm a 52 yr old man), over a cat that wasn't even mine. but she had had such a hard life. i just hope that her last couple of years were better.
so, all of that to say that new york city DOES have an animal control unit. if you call 311, they will connect you. if there is abuse involved, they may, or may not, address it.
i firmly believe that having an animal put to sleep is far better than forcing it to live a life of misery.
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