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Published May 08, 2008 09:43 am - "The cats are mostly pure-bred. It's rare to get so many in a hoarding case. This is what sets this one apart." Hoarded exotic cats looking for new homes By Crystal Bozek THE EAGLE-TRIBUNE (NORTH ANDOVER, Mass.) METHUEN, Mass. — Many of these exotic felines can easily run you $600 to $1,000. But for a limited time, dozens of Sphynxes, Himalayans, Munchkins, Devon Rexes, Ragdolls and Siamese are available for a mere $125 adoption fee. A woman who had been hoarding the cats voluntarily surrendered 51 of them to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals this week. "There are some bizarre breeds here; ones you don't see in this area," said Mike Keiley, manager at the Nevins Farm animal adoption center. "The cats are mostly pure-bred. It's rare to get so many in a hoarding case. This is what sets this one apart." Keiley would not release the middle-aged woman's name. "It appears that she probably was buying them as well as breeding them and selling them," Keiley said. "Most hoarders start accidentally, helping out neighborhood cats. People give you more and more. ... This started with a different intent. But it ended just as bad. The house conditions were not very good." The woman went out of her way to obtain these cats, he said. Depending on the breeder, Sphynx cats — the nearly hairless felines made famous in the Austin Powers movies — can cost up to $1,000. Munchkins, a newer breed characterized by abnormally short legs, can carry a price tag of more than $500.
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