The Humane Society for Tacoma and Pierce County is caring for nearly 200 cats on-site and needs foster families now, after taking in 60 animals rescued from a drifting sailboat off Owen Beach and another 20 from an abandoned vehicle in the same week.
The final count from the boat rescue is double what responders initially reported.
Tacoma police first found roughly 30 cats aboard the 40-foot sailboat anchored off Point Defiance on Aug. 7; officers returned Aug. 10 and removed 23 more, then used power tools on Aug. 11 to cut into the vessel's interior and extract the last cat, bringing the total to 60, according to KING 5 and Tacoma Weekly reporting.
Humane Society spokesperson Stefanie Cornell said the cats range in age from about seven months to five or six years. More than 20 are already placed in foster homes; the rest remain at the shelter. All received initial veterinary exams, vaccines and parasite preventatives. Some were dehydrated and thin, with fleas, but Cornell said they "seem to be doing relatively well, especially considering where they came from."
Hours after the 60th boat cat arrived, animal control brought in 20 more cats removed from an abandoned vehicle. Those animals were exposed to ringworm and are undergoing treatment. Combined, the two cases pushed 80 new cats into the shelter system during what Cornell called kitten season, when intake is already high.
FOX 13 reported on Aug. 15 that the shelter had 190 cats on-site and another 230 in foster care, roughly 420 animals total in its system and far beyond normal capacity.
How the population grew
The sailboat's resident, Derek Hieb, 62, told the Seattle Times he works "hand to mouth" as a rigger and lived aboard the boat. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a friend gave him a cat named Missy, who gave birth to a litter. Hieb said he got Missy spayed and two kittens fixed but couldn't afford more. Over roughly six years, the population multiplied to dozens.
Hieb said he left the boat after a cat bite swelled his hand. He was away getting antibiotics when police responded to a welfare check. He told the Seattle Times on Aug. 12 that he accepts responsibility. He has been living in his car since.
Joe Parrington, a local animal advocate known as "Catman" who is regularly called in by Tacoma Animal Control for feral cat situations, said reaching 60 cats would have required dealing with pregnant cats for close to a year, given a roughly 63-day gestation period. TPD spokesperson Shelbie Boyd described conditions aboard as deplorable.
Private cat trapper Camille Sutherland, who boarded the vessel without authorization, reported cat feces 2 inches deep on the floor and empty feeding bowls.
No charges yet
No arrests or charges have been announced. Tacoma police told FOX 13 the case could be considered hoarding under Washington's animal cruelty statute. The boat, still legally registered, was posted for removal as of Aug. 11.
The boat cats are not available for adoption until police complete their criminal investigation. No timeline for that decision has been announced.
How to help
The Humane Society is urgently seeking foster families and donations. Residents can sign up to foster on the organization's website, donate online or purchase supplies through the shelter's Amazon Wish List.
