WASHINGTON TWP., Pa. — Kitten rescue Foxy’s Cradle will change its operations amid negotiations to comply with North Whitehall Township zoning rules, while preparing for a possible court battle to determine the rescue’s future.
The nonprofit held a fundraiser Sunday at Friedens Fire Company in Washington Township, in part, Foxy’s Cradle founder Kandice Reinert said, to raise money for legal bills in an ongoing zoning dispute with North Whitehall Township.
The fire hall was constantly full early Sunday afternoon as supporters filed through, stopping at stations lining the room: a bake sale, a volunteer selling Foxy’s Cradle shirts, or a row of tiny kittens in incubators next to older, adoptable cats in cages.
“You can see by the people here, see how passionate we are,” said Whitehall resident Sandy Seng, who attended the fundraiser. “This is like a one-of-a-kind rescue, and we should be proud to have it around here. And instead, [North Whitehall Township] want[s] to shut them down.”
Last month, the township’s zoning hearing board determined that by operating out of a home at 5620 Overlook Road, the rescue violates rules limiting any lot to one main use.
It also found that a kitten rescue was an improper use for the agricultural-residential zoned property, and that Reinert failed to get required permits for the rescue operation.
“Our ultimate goal is once we get… fosters lined up, each one we're going to equip with an incubator and all the supplies and everything needed to make their in-home fostering successful."Kandice Reinert, founder of Foxy's Cradle
Anthony M. Brichta, North Whitehall Township’s attorney in the zoning dispute, emphasized at last month’s hearing that while “there's never been animosity on behalf of the township as to what this group is doing, or what they're trying to do,” the rules are unambiguous for all.
Foxy’s Cradle rescue specializes in kittens less than four weeks old, which cannot survive without their mother. Substituting for her care requires temperature-controlled incubators, regular feeding, and near-constant attention.
Reinert said this means the best way to take care of these very young kittens was to set up a nursery in her home.
Amid ongoing negotiations with the township, Foxy’s Cradle is shrinking its footprint at the Overlook Road "nursery" and building an expanded network of 24/7 foster caregivers, effectively spreading the care Reinert provided in North Whitehall across the region.
“Our ultimate goal is once we get… fosters lined up, each one we're going to equip with an incubator and all the supplies and everything needed to make their in-home fostering successful,” Reinert said Sunday.
“Everything that we would do in-nursery we're trying to do in their home.”
Reinert said she hopes the changes will be enough to appease township zoning officials. But if they can't reach an agreement by the end of this week, she and her mother, Cheryl Reinert, who owns the home on Overlook Road, intend to appeal the zoning board’s decision to the Lehigh County Court.
“We are not going to back down,” said Cheryl Reinert, who also helps take care of the rescue’s kittens. “We have to. The kittens need us.”
Despite the ongoing legal dispute, both Reinerts said they were confident that Foxy’s Cradle will continue saving kittens regardless of how the zoning dispute works out.
“We can definitely continue,” said Kandice Reinert, “but we need to significantly expand that [foster caregiver network] in order to be able to provide rescue to the same numbers that we did in prior years.”
Brian Myszkowski contributed to this report.
