A 55-year-old Brownsdale woman who had been keeping 25 cats in a garage in the 1200 block of Fifth Avenue NW in Austin has been told she must move the animals by June 28 -- or else the city will do it for her.

According to police reports, officers were informed the residents of the house were keeping cats in their garage. Upon investigation, officers found 12 cages in the garage with 25 cats, most of which were kittens.

The woman who put the cats in the garage said she had been keeping the cats there since June 23 and was planning on moving them when she was finished establishing a pet adoption service outside of Austin.

Though the woman claimed she had state and city permits for keeping the cats at the Austin residence, police found that no city permits have been issued for that recently.

The woman has been told to move the cats by the end of the week.

City ordinance says no one can have more than three cats at their residence, unless they are running an animal shelter.

Amanda L. Rohde can be reached at 434-2214 or by e-mail at :mailto:amanda.rohde@austindailyherald.com