By Patric Hedlund, Gary Meyer, Chuck Noble and community reporters

A major operation was conducted at the Cause 4 Cats facility in Lebec on May 6. A convoy of vehicles occupied Circle Drive, including Kern County Animal Control’s director Guy Shaw, veterinarians, representatives from a shelter in San Diego County, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (L.A.) and a rescue group called United Animal Nation (UAN).

HSUS removed cats from the facility maintained by Lolette and Russ Robrahn, according to the Robrahns who spoke with The Mountain Enterprise by telephone. UAN reports that they assisted and are sheltering many of the cats in a temporary facility in Lancaster.

According to Lolette Robrahn, there were 218 cats in the facility. Cause 4 Cats had a conditional use permit (CUP) from Kern County for 150 cats. Kern County Animal Control has now reduced that permit to only 85 cats, according to Robrahn.

Two of the cats taken had to be euthanized. Videographers from the Animal Planet series Overwhelmed, and photographers from The Mountain Enterprise were on-scene.

“This was a cooperative effort and we were all in agreement,” Robrahn told our reporter, speaking about the agencies involved in the operation. Robrahn said most of the cats will be adopted into homes. “They will all need to be checked for feline leukemia and other infectious diseases. Those that are certified as healthy will be adopted into good homes,” sources told The Mountain Enterprise on May 6.

This is part of the May 14, 2010 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.

Have an opinion on this matter? We'd like to hear from you.