More than 20 cats were recovered from a Plano motel room Monday after authorities learned the room’s occupant had been jailed.
Ronald L. Teague, who was indicted by the Dallas County Grand Jury earlier this month on a charge of felony cruelty to animals, was arrested Sunday after being questioned by Plano Police in an unrelated incident.
Monday morning Plano Animal Services recovered 21 cats and kittens from his room at the Motel 6 on Hwy. 75 at Park, where Teague had been living for some time.
“As you might expect, the stench was terrible,” said Jonnie England, Director of Animal Advocacy with the Metroplex Animal Coalition. “Litter boxes lined the walls, and there were plates of food all over the floor. Many of the cats appeared to be in fairly good condition, but several had obvious signs of illness. Three cats, including the mother of four young kittens, were confined to the small bathroom. One cat has a severe mouth infection, at least one has ringworm, and another was thin and had hair loss.”
Six of the cats had been taken by Teague from other individuals, said England, and those were returned to their owners. The remaining 15 cats were taken to Plano Animal Services for evaluation.
The felony cruelty indictment stems from a July 2007 charge in which approximately 60 live and 25 dead animals were found in deplorable conditions inside his East Dallas home. The day before the animals were discovered, Teague had been arrested following an hour-long, high-speed car chase from Dallas to McKinney. When finally stopped by police, Teague had a dead cat inside a carrier in his car and said he was taking it to a veterinarian.
It’s expected that Teague will be transferred within a few days to the Lew Sterrett jail in Dallas to await trial on the felony cruelty charge.
Story and photos by Jonnie England
Metroplex Animal Coalition
