FARMINGTON HILLS (WWJ/AP) – Animal welfare officials are seeking new homes for dozens of cats after more than 140 were found living with a woman in an upscale Oakland County community.

The woman, whose name was not released, took two pregnant stray cats into her Farmington Hills home about two years ago and they quickly grew in number. According to reports, the woman was living with 143 cats and kittens before she turned to an animal shelter for help.

Susan Edwards, president of the Animal Welfare Society of Southeastern Michigan, said unlike some animal hoarding cases, the woman actually took very good care of the felines.

“The house had turned into a house for cats. There were ropes hanging from the ceiling, cat toys and litter boxes,” Edwards told The Daily Tribune of Royal Oak. “There were cats everywhere … although she had some rooms where there were no cats allowed. She had most of her furniture hidden in those rooms. In the (rest of the) house, all the carpets were gone, as were all the window coverings.”

Edwards said the woman contacted them for help and agreed to have the no-kill shelter remove the cats from her home, which was “basically clean, except for the smell of urine.”

“She never owned cats before and tried to do a good thing, taking in these cats,” Edwards told the Tribune. “They just kept multiplying. … She thought it would be easy to find homes for the kittens. Before she knew it, she had 140 cats and kittens. She was just overwhelmed.”

Edwards said the cats are well socialized and some are even ready for adoption.

“It was something to see, I’ll tell you, but they are all beautiful cats,” Edwards told the Tribune. “She’s a very nice lady, not a hoarder, and she never intended on keeping these cats. She had a big heart and didn’t want to let them outside. It’s lucky she contacted us.”

For more information on how you can adopt one of the cats, visit www.animalwelfaresociety.net, www.nbarmichigan.org, or www.tigerlilyrescue.com.

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