KVIG Informative

Henderson officials seized 21 Sphynx cats from a local breeder this month after finding illnesses and physical deformities tied to how the animals were bred. One buyer says she watched her kitten collapse in front of her before officials ever got involved.

A Henderson court awarded the City of Henderson custody of 21 Sphynx cats seized from Sin City Sphynx, a breeding operation run by Shanti Cloonan, after Henderson Animal Protection Services investigated animal welfare concerns and the court determined Cloonan was unfit to retain ownership of the animals.

Many of the cats were found suffering from illnesses and physical abnormalities associated with their breeding practices, according to Henderson Animal Protection Services. Cloonan’s operation advertised so-called designer Sphynx mutations, including Bambino, Elf and Dwelf kittens, produced by crossbreeding hairless Sphynx cats with dwarf breeds such as Munchkins.

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Ashley Collins, a local buyer, said she purchased a kitten from the breeder for $1,000 and noticed an eye problem almost immediately, which she said the breeder attributed to allergies. Collins said the kitten’s health rapidly deteriorated, and she woke one morning to find the kitten collapse near its litter box. An emergency veterinarian later diagnosed the kitten with mycoplasma, an infection that attacks red blood cells, and calicivirus, a contagious viral infection in cats. Collins said the veterinarian told her the kitten almost didn’t survive.

The cats remain in Henderson Animal Protection Services’ care while receiving veterinary treatment, and the city said it will share adoption and rescue information once the animals are healthy.

Cloonan declined to formally comment on the case. No charges against her have been announced as of this reporting.

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Under Nevada Revised Statute 574.100, animal neglect or unjustifiable injury is classified as a misdemeanor for a first offense, and courts are required to order convicted individuals to pay full financial restitution for impoundment and veterinary care costs incurred by animal control agencies. Henderson is asking anyone who purchased a cat from Sin City Sphynx or Cloonan and later experienced health issues to contact Animal Protection Services at 702-267-4970.

The 21 cats now in Henderson’s custody are getting treatment they didn’t have before. What’s still unresolved is whether Cloonan ever faces charges over how they got sick in the first place — and how many other buyers are still waiting to find out if their own kitten’s “allergies” were something worse.