06/03/2026
Warning long post BUT PLEASE READ!!!
On Friday night, May 22, 2026, Rissa called me on her way home from work. We were on the phone when she pulled up to her house and heard dogs barking aggressively. We stayed on the phone because she was worried the dogs would approach her, and she was scared.
As she entered her yard, she immediately noticed that one of our colony cats, Farm Boy, was on top of the shed, which was unusual because he does not climb well due to an old gunshot wound to his paw and leg. As we continued talking, she became increasingly alarmed as she realized all of the cats were missing. Some were simply frozen under the shed while others were perched high in trees 30-50 feet off the ground.
Suddenly, she started screaming, "OMG, Mom, hurry! Come here!" My heart dropped, and I immediately left for her house. I arrived within two minutes.
When I got there, we found Trop, one of our long-time resident colony cats, dead and covered in mud. We were devastated and all we could do was sit there and cry in disbelief. We had to pull it together to continue searching for the other cats, several of them 30 to 50 feet high in trees, terrified and clinging to safety. I can’t even begin to explain the emotions running through us as we searched in the rain and the dark for hours trying to locate as many cats as possible fearing what we would find.
After things settled down and I returned home, we reviewed footage from the security cameras on the property. What we saw was horrifying. A Catahoula-Pit Bull-Great Dane mix was roaming through the backyard, chasing and terrorizing the cats. Eventually, one of the cats slipped from a high perch while trying to escape. That cat was Trop. He was unable to outrun the dog and was brutally killed. Trop had been a part of our rescue colony for years and became feeder friendly with us. He was so loved by not only us but all the other colony cats.
We identified the dog and knew exactly where it lived. The residence houses several large dogs as well as a few smaller Chihuahua mixes. These dogs roam the streets daily, and our local Animal Control is frequently seen at the residence due to ongoing complaints from neighbors.
We learned that Animal Control had recently attempted to trap the dogs because of the constant complaints but was unsuccessful. We were also told that the owners had recently been required to rehome a silver Pit Bull due to aggression towards people. Another large dog at the residence is reportedly aggressive toward other dogs. The Catahoula-Pit mix involved in the attack is the newest dog living at the residence and is the dog responsible for killing Trop.
The property has never had a secure fence. The owner of the dogs was recently incarcerated, and the individual living there has stated that they are low-income and cannot afford to build a fence.
On Sunday morning, the dog returned. It pushed its way underneath the fence and began terrorizing the cats again. Fortunately, Rissa's husband was outside in the front yard securing the gates when he heard barking and commotion. He ran to the backyard, but by the time he got there, the dog had fled.
Once again, the cats were terrorized in their own backyard.
Later that Sunday afternoon, I received a frantic phone call from Rissa telling me the dog was back. I rushed over and we watched the dog chase cats underneath a neighbor's trailer. Our hearts dropped, and we panicked not being able to see under there yet hear thrashing! Both Phil (Rissa's husband) and I were armed because we feared for the cats' safety as well as our own. The neighbor came outside to see what was going on and distracted us so during that time, the dog ran out from beneath the trailer and slipped back into its own yard.
While I was standing near the road where the dog lives another large dog from the same home behaved aggressively towards me so I called 911. The dispatcher transferred me to the local Sheriff's Office, which took approximately twelve rings before someone answered.
About 40 minutes later, I received a call from Animal Control stating they would respond shortly. It took nearly three hours before they showed up.
When the officer arrived, we explained everything that had happened and showed her video footage of the dog attacking our cats inside our fenced yard each time. She then drove back to the Animal Shelter to retrieve a trap since she said all she could do was set a trap on our property and warn the dog owners. She also informed us that the occupants had already been involved in six recent cases with the shelter and that they typically refuse to answer the door, forcing Animal Control to leave warning notices instead of taking action. We were not happy with that response at all!! I ran back home and on my back I saw the animal control officer at the dogs residence accompanied by two deputy sheriffs.
The deputies used a loudspeaker and activated their sirens, to get someone finally to come outside and a lengthy discussion took place.
The Animal Control officer later returned and informed us that she could not seize the dog without first issuing warnings and citations and she would set the trap. We were shocked and frustrated. After expressing our concerns, she contacted her supervisor. We were then told that if the dog returned to our property and we could provide photos or videos with timestamps, Animal Control would seize the dog.
For the next several hours, we worked to coax the colony cats onto Rissa's screened porch, which was the only immediate option we had to keep them safe. Unfortunately, we were only able to secure six cats, and several others remained unaccounted for.
That night, the trap was set. The dog did return, but it showed no interest in the bait. Instead, it continued attempting to gain access to the yard. Although the dog was not trapped, we felt some relief knowing that its return had been captured on camera and believing Animal Control would now follow through on their promise to seize the dog.
At 9:00 a.m. the next morning, I contacted the Animal Control officer. She told me someone would be out shortly. Later, while Rissa and I were returning from the store, we saw the dog sitting on the porch of its residence. We knew it would likely be heading back toward our property again.
As we pulled into Rissa's driveway, a different Animal Control officer arrived. He informed us that he could not seize the dog and would only be issuing a citation. We were furious and heartbroken because this directly contradicted what we had previously been told.
The officer explained that we had been given incorrect information. I argued that this dog had already killed one of our pets, repeatedly entered our property, and posed a threat to both animals and the young children that play outside. He responded that protocol had to be followed and that was that.
The officer then visited the residence and later returned, claiming that the occupants did not own a dog matching the description we provided—even though we had personally seen the dog there just minutes before he arrived at our house.He claimed he searched their house and did not see the dog.
Now we are helpless and our local government has failed to protect us, our pets, and our community.
As a result, we were forced to develop a temporary plan to relocate our outdoor colony cats until the situation could be resolved. We spent all of Memorial day Monday afternoon cleaning out our old kitten shed at my house so the cats could be moved there and kept safe. The cats obviously are extremely stressed from Friday nights being hunted by this dog to being moved into Rissa’s patio to now being moved again to my shed. They DO not deserve this!!! Their fenced backyard is supposed to be their sanctuary!! Their safe place …. This has got to be a nightmare we are going to wake up from right?
Tuesday morning, I send an email to the parish president, our local councilman, and the director of Tangipahoa parish Animal Control. It was a mini book with all the events since Friday night. I did receive a call from Chip Fitz stating the Parish president forwarded my email to him and that he would have the dog picked up. I told him that it appears they are hiding the dog and he was aware but said he would follow up daily with this and update me when they have the dog in their possession.
After some investigation of our own, we were able to find the homeowners contact information to see if maybe they could help out in this situation. Unfortunately, they denied owning the home and property and quit responding to any text or calls.
During our investigation of people who live in nearby homes we stumbled across a lady that we did TNR for a few years back to find she is living on the road. She was one of the people who called Animal control not long ago reporting the same dog for chasing two of her cats. Thankfully the cats made it up high to safety before she came out and ran the dog off. She does state that the dog did damage to her property under her trailer messing up ac duct work as he chased the cats. She also stated the dogs jump up at her windows and bite through the screens at the cats inside.
Here we are days later and haven’t heard back anything from Animal Control ….
I know most of you know Rissa and me on a personal level and know how much we LOVE animals. I mean for 10 years we sacrificed our personal lives and free time to help cats and people in our community! Where is our justice? Rissa is a vet tech at a local Veterinarian’s office and had to take the week off because on her first day back the first patient is an orange cat that looked just like Trop and she ran out the room bawling and called me. Meanwhile, Trop is in the freezer at her work waiting to be cremated. She couldn’t bear to even go back to work and thankfully they told her to take some mental days. I have been working while still trying to piece things together and be strong for her. I can’t even tell you the number of tears cried since Friday night between myself, Rissa and my mom who has always supported our rescue. Our emotions are all over the place from sadness to pure anger that this is still unresolved. For days we barely slept feeling like we need to be outside to protect the cats until we were able to relocate them to my shed. We are exhausted!! WE WILL NOT REST UNTIL WE SEE THE DOG TAKEN AND IN THE CUSTODY OF THE SHELTER. Here we are over two weeks later several emails sent to animal control Director as well as the parish president with no resolution. The dog is still living on the property where the owners purposely leave the fence open for them to come and go as they please. The only thing that animal control has done is set a dog trap in the nearby area. The only thing that has been caught in the dog trap are people’s pet cats. We personally witnessed the dog, sniff the trap and move on . As we know from 10 years of rescuing animals and setting traps it is hard to trap an animal that is not hungry and prey driven. As of today, I have not received a response to my last email and the dog still remains at large.
On another note Fort Feline trapped and TNR”d many cats at SELU campus for 2 years for 2 sweet ladies that fed and cared for them daily, yet someone complained and wanted them gone. Animal control went and set traps and made that happen, yet a dangerous dog from many people complaining … NOTHING.
We are asking everyone who supports us to share share share!! Tag the Tangipahoa Parish President (Robbie Miller) Animal Control Director (Chip Fitz) and anyone that maybe a resource to help resolve this problem. We deserve to feel safe in our own fenced backyard. We deserve to have pets in that yard that are not at risk of torture and death from this dog!!!! Help us by getting this post seen by as many as possible!!! Thank you for taking the time to read this VERY long post and supporting the Fort – Fort Feline FOREVER STRONG!! Louisiana has to do better!! Tangipahoa Parish has to do better!! We love you baby Trop until we see you again💔💔💔
Fort Feline home to a feral colony that once lived outdoor and now has all the perks of indoor life!
