# Long Island Kitties in Trouble due to fire at cat sanctuary (2025-Mar-31) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** breaking-news\ **Created:** [April 2, 2025, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532 "2025-04-02T17:22:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/1 "2025-04-02T17:22:43Z")
Suffolk County cat sanctuary recently burned to the ground, arson suspected. At least one article has a Go Fund Me link and another (paywalled, unfortunately) mentions volunteers looking for help, so I’m posting here first. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/2 "2025-04-02T17:27:14Z")
Here’s a link to the news story. > **[Deadly fire at Happy Cat Sanctuary on Long Island under investigation](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/happy-cat-sanctuary-medford-long-island-fire/)** > > Happy Cat Sanctuary owner Chris Arsenault was killed trying to save his cats from a fire on Dourland Road in Medford, Long Island. * * * * * * **As a Moderator** : Please no links to the GoFundMe. We have no reasonable way to verify it is legit. It probably is, but it would have to bump up to the Modloop first. Also I moved this from #About This Message Board to #Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share, seems like the right place for this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/3 "2025-04-02T17:29:35Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Please no links to the GoFundMe. No plans to link directly but it is in an article. > **[Volunteers work to ensure cats are safe, healthy after sanctuary owner killed...](https://abc7ny.com/post/happy-cat-sanctuary-fire-volunteers-work-ensure-cats-are-safe-healthy-owner-killed-blaze-medford-long-island/16116351/)** > > A day after the owner of an animal sanctuary was killed in a fire on Long Island, volunteers worked Tuesday to care for hundreds of displaced cats. And here’s the paywalled one: > **[After Happy Cat fire on Long Island, volunteers scramble to find care...](https://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/fire-happy-cat-sanctuary-fatal-oh7vwz4f)** > > The cause of the fire remains under investigation, authorities said. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2025, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/4 "2025-04-03T13:02:00Z")
> **[Fire Destroys New York Cat Sanctuary, Killing Founder and 100+ Felines -...](https://www.newsbreak.com/animals-around-the-globe-312249899/3947439012893-fire-destroys-new-york-cat-sanctuary-killing-founder-and-100-felines)** > > In the quiet hamlet of Medford, Long Island, a catastrophe sent shockwaves through the animal welfare community as Happy Cat Sanctuary, a refuge for hundr > An estimated 150 cats had escaped the inferno, many suffering from burns and smoke inhalation. Volunteers and animal rescue teams worked tirelessly to round up the frightened animals still roaming the charred property. > > Roy Gross, chief of the Suffolk County SPCA, described the heartbreaking scene: “The whole place is burned down, and there are cats sitting right there on the debris.” The organization deployed its mobile animal hospital to treat the injured felines on-site. > Arsenault’s story was one of grief turned into purpose. In 2006, after losing his 24-year-old son, Eric, in a motorcycle accident, he stumbled upon a colony of 30 sick kittens. Nursing them back to health became his calling. Over the years, his home transformed into a shelter where forgotten animals could find food, warmth, and love. > Not everyone embraced Arsenault’s mission. Neighbors raised concerns about the number of cats on the property. Complaints surfaced, prompting visits from the SPCA. But each time, inspectors found the animals healthy and well-cared for. > > “He wasn’t a hoarder,” Gross emphasized. “This was a man doing the right thing. He was a hero for what he was doing.” Arsenault had been working to relocate dozens of cats to a farm upstate, hoping to give them more space. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2025, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/5 "2025-04-03T14:10:31Z")
Title changed to be more descriptive, and to fit breaking news style, at request of OP. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2025, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-island-kitties-in-trouble-due-to-fire-at-cat-sanctuary-2025-mar-31/1016532/6 "2025-04-04T13:51:00Z")
Update: [Happy Cat Sanctuary fire on Long Island not considered suspicious, officials say.](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/officials-say-deadly-happy-cat-sanctuary-fire-on-long-island-not-considered-suspicious/ar-AA1Cfyi7?apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1) Looking less like an annoyed neighbor took matters into their own hands and more like a malfunctioning propane-fueled space heater.