Below is an letter that will be emailed on July 31, 2025. This is just the beginning!
Dear Senator Kearney,
Congresswoman Scanlon, and Representatives Boyd and Curry,
Thank you for taking the time to hold a community meeting and listen directly to the concerns of local residents. Your willingness to engage with the public is deeply appreciated.
I’m following up on my remarks at the July 25th community meeting at Beverly Hills Middle School, where I spoke on behalf of Delco Loves Animals about the growing crisis of stray and abandoned animals—particularly cats—across Delaware County. At the request of Bernadetta, a dedicated animal rescue and TNR advocate, we launched a petition titled Protect the Paws: Change the Law on Change.org. As of this writing, we have gathered 496 signatures toward our goal of 1,000. We would greatly appreciate your help in spreading the word to reach more supporters.
This crisis is not the fault of the animals or those trying to help. It stems from irresponsible pet ownership, including abandonment, neglect, failure to spay or neuter, and allowing pets to roam the streets. Many of these cats are former house pets—not feral animals—who are unequipped to survive on their own. Left to fend for themselves, they face starvation, disease, injury, abuse, and death.
Despite this, residents who step up to feed and care for these animals are being threatened with $1,000 fines in some municipalities. This is especially troubling considering that many towns in Delaware County have both a “no roaming” and a “no feeding” ordinance, yet only the feeding ban is being actively enforced—with no regard for how these animals ended up on the streets.
The people being penalized are not the ones causing the problem. Instead, enforcement should focus on those who:
- Abandon pets when they move,
- Allow unaltered cats (and dogs) to roam freely,
- Shut cats out of their homes permanently,
- Or dump animals intentionally far from their own
neighborhoods.
Enforcing only the no-feeding ordinance does not solve the problem—it enables animal cruelty. Starving animals suffer or die, often being hit by cars, attacked, or deliberately harmed.
In one personal experience as
real estate agents, my husband and I were putting up a "For Sale"
sign when we were surrounded by over ten stray cats, one in extremely poor
condition. A young girl told us that a boy on her street had killed one of that
cat’s kittens. This is not just heartbreaking—it’s alarming and unacceptable.
My husband and I have met with members of the District Attorney’s Office, and I had the opportunity to briefly speak with District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer at a political event—where I happened to be standing right beside him (to me that was nothing short of Divine Providence, as he’d been unable to attend our meeting earlier that day). During both conversations, we were informed that while the DA’s office is committed to prosecuting cases of animal cruelty, they can only do so when law enforcement makes an arrest.
Unfortunately, what we often hear is that many local police departments in Delaware County are understaffed and under-resourced, and as a result, animal cruelty cases are not prioritized. The perception—whether accurate or not—is that these offenses are rarely investigated or enforced. And when people believe there will be no consequences, they feel emboldened to treat animals inhumanely, knowing there's little chance of being held accountable.
We recognize that this is an issue that must also be addressed at the municipal and local law enforcement levels, and we are committed to working on that front as well. If there is any support or guidance you can offer in helping move this forward, we would greatly appreciate it.
Beyond compassion, this issue has real economic consequences. Stray animal overpopulation leads to noise disturbances (fighting, females in heat), property damage, and unsanitary conditions. These factors lower property values and discourage potential buyers from settling in affected neighborhoods. A visible stray population is a signal of neglect and a community in decline—something that directly impacts the reputation and desirability of our towns.
Meanwhile, the people and organizations trying to address this crisis are stretched to their limits. Nonprofits and rescue groups are working hard—often independently—but the problem is growing. Volunteers are emotionally, physically, and financially exhausted. Shelters are overwhelmed, and healthy, young adoptable animals—including kittens and puppies—are being euthanized due to lack of space. Spay-and-abort procedures are being performed on pregnant cats and dogs up to birth. This is a tragic and unsustainable situation and should be seen as a wake-up call to all of us.
That’s why we’re calling on your leadership to help implement a comprehensive, humane, and coordinated solution for Delaware County, including:
A county-wide Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program, properly funded and adopted across municipalities,
- An end to spay-and-abort procedures and the
euthanasia of healthy, adoptable animals,
- Public education campaigns about responsible pet
ownership and abandonment,
- A re-examination of ordinances to ensure they
protect animals and the people helping them,
- And support for local rescue groups and advocates
working on the front lines.
We are not asking you to solve this alone or secure all the funding—there is a dedicated network of advocates, residents, and organizations ready to help, and we will actively pursue fundraising once our nonprofit is established and we receive our 501(c)(3) status. We urge you to look at Delaware’s statewide spay and neuter voucher program as a model and consider implementing something similar here in Pennsylvania to address this crisis at its root.
Delco Loves Animals, along with many community members, is eager to work with your offices toward a permanent, compassionate, and effective policy. We hope you will stand with us—and with the animals—by supporting practical, humane reforms. My husband and I have no doubt that together we truly can make the difference that needs to be made.
Please note: I’ve cc’d Kristen Tullo, Pennsylvania State Director, State Affairs at Humane World for Animals, as well as the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.
With kind regard,
