Animal shelter staff removed 44 cats from a Sumner apartment Wednesday after their owner died earlier in the week, officials said. Sumner police had contacted the shelter after officers saw the cats inside the home.

The owner’s family agreed to the removal and helped contain the animals, according to the city. At a Puyallup shelter, the cats received examinations, vaccinations and emergency housing. Officials said they appeared healthy and friendly on arrival and seemed to range in age from less than a month to three years.

The cats must be spayed or neutered and medically cleared before adoption. Officials said the case is not being investigated as cruelty or neglect. The shelter said the household grew from two unaltered cats to 44 in less than three years, creating an emergency for the small community shelter.