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Efforts continued Thursday to care for the surviving cats of Happy Cat Sanctuary and to plan a large-scale memorial for its founder, Chris Arsenault.
Arsenault died Monday in a fire at the Medford sanctuary that also claimed the lives of more than 100 cats as he was attempting to save them.
Lisa Jaeger of Jaeger’s Run Animal Rescue in Port Jefferson provided an update on Thursday, detailing security measures, the ongoing rescue operation and the overwhelming public response. Meanwhile, arson investigators told Newsday they have not found a suspicious cause for the fire, which has drawn the attention of people worldwide.
The remains of the sanctuary at 12 Dourland Road are now under 24-hour protection, Jaeger said.
“The sanctuary in Medford will be secure with armed guards, so it will be protected 24 hours a day,” Jaeger said, stressing the importance of not interfering with the work of rescue teams, who are trying to recover and care for the cats that survived the fire.
“Nobody is to enter the property, step foot on the property. I don’t care who you are,” she continued, while adding that unauthorized individuals on the property could be arrested for trespassing.
Given the outpouring of support for Happy Cat — more than $750,000 has been raised for the rescue and care of the surviving cats — a massive memorial service for Arsenault is in works, with organizers seeking a venue capable of accommodating tens of thousands of people, Jaeger said.
“The biggest problem that we’re running into right now is Madison Square Garden is not available,” Jaeger joked, before later choking back tears while talking about Arsenault’s devotion to his rescue work. “We have people from the United Kingdom that want to fly here. I have people in California that need to fly here for this memorial.”
She explained that organizers are working closely with Arsenault’s daughter regarding a memorial service and will announce details once finalized.
Among the funds that have been raised for the rescue and care of the surviving cats is $645,000 from 12,800 donations to a GoFundMe campaign.
“Long Island, I love you. We have people from all over the world contacting us, and this does not surprise me,” she said.
“So, on goes the dream, Chris,” she continued, referring to Arsenault. “It’s going. It’s happening.”
Additionally, a database is being created to catalog every rescued cat, Jaeger said, allowing people who previously surrendered cats to the sanctuary to check if their pets survived. However, Jaeger emphasized that any rehoming requests will be subject to the same adoption process as all others, including vet and home checks.
Top photos: Facebook (Strong Island Animal Rescue and Toronto Kitten Rescue.
