Owner faces 11 animal- cruelty charges after hearing

A man who harbored 166 cats in his Gahanna home, 55 of them dead, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to 11 criminal charges filed by Columbus Humane regarding animal cruelty.

Daniel Slyby, 60, faces 11 counts of prohibitions concerning companion animals, all second-degree misdemeanors, according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.

A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Feb. 13.

All but one of the 111 living cats rescued from Slyby’s home in the 3600 block of Olde Ridenour Road on Dec. 13 are still on the mend at Columbus Humane on the Northwest Side, shelter spokeswoman Kerry Shaw said. Many were found in “deplorable condition,” Shaw said last week.

One cat removed from the home had to be euthanized because of health issues, she said.

Slyby must post a $64,200 cash bond by Dec. 30 or the surviving animals will be permanently forfeited to Columbus Humane. The bond amount is the shelter’s estimated costs of caring for the animals for the next 30 days.

If Slyby posts the bond and is found not guilty, it’s possible he could keep a handful of the cats. Gahanna law prohibits residents from having more than five animals at a residence.

Ultimately, Columbus Humane’s goal is to get the cats healthy enough for adoption, though it’s “way too early” to say when that will be, Shaw said.

For now, the group is

being isolated from the rest of the shelter’s animals to reduce the risk of spreading contagious diseases. They’re being treated for a variety of illnesses, including respiratory and fungal infections, but blood tests haven’t indicated anything out of the ordinary, she said.

“All things considered, they seem to be adjusting well,” Shaw said.

The shelter is in need of donations as it is caring for about 170 total cats — the 110 rescued cats and the 60 or so already on its adoption floor as of Wednesday night. The most in-demand items are standard-size towels, fleece blankets and canned and dry cat food, Shaw said.