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Authorities are looking for the person who fatally shot and beat a pet cat in the lower Hudson River Valley in New York last month, and officials say the suspect may be the same individual who has killed three other cats near the area since July.
Officials in Putnam County say a Patterson, N.Y, man called the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Feb. 7 and said his cat appeared to have been shot while it was outside.
Authorities found the 7-month-old black and brown female Calico cat, named "Blackfoot," with a neck wound; the feline also appeared to be paralyzed from its mid-section to its hind paws.
The cat was rushed to a nearby hospital, where veterinarians conducted an X-ray and found a metal projectile embedded in part of the animal's spine. Animal control officers said the suspect may have used a high-powered BB gun or a low-caliber rifle to fire the projectile at the cat.
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Veterinarians also found a spinal fracture that they believe was caused by blunt force trauma.
"I believe the person called her over, the shot her in the back, then kicked her," said Blackfoot's owner Robert Kitts, who found her bleeding outside his home last week.
The cat remained under veterinary care at the Westchester Animal Hospital until it died Feb. 11 due to progressive paralysis, authorities said.
Officials are looking into whether the latest case of cat abuse may be connected to a severed cat head found staged in August in an intersection half a mile from where Blackfoot was shot. Authorities are also investigating if those incidents are connected to two other cat beheadings in July several miles away in the Connecticut towns of Oxford and Fairfield.
"We responded to a call not quite half a mile from here where we found a decapitated cat's head that was placed in the middle of the road," said Ken Ross of the Putnam County SPCA. "That took place within a month of two cats that were found nearby in Connecticut in the same condition."
Authorities are concerned that the cat killer could move to more serious crimes.
"It's moving into the realm of -- something's going to happen to a human," said Ross. "Something's going to be done to a human because this person no longer has the control to hold back."
Anyone with information about animal abuse in the area is asked to call (845) 520-6915 or visit www.spcaputnam.org.
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Disheartening to know that POS bastards like this are running loose in our society. What a gutless coward to harm innocent and defenseless animals. I would love to get my hands on this POS! If caught, my penalty for him/her would be execution.
Don't Worry! He'll Pop-up to Bigger Prey!
Anyone know where Michael Vick has been????? Wouldn't put it past him one bit.
I feel sick. This human being is evil.
This person is in need of major help. It is sad that he has to be so cruel. He deserves what he is dishing out. However, he shouldn't have been given the opportunity to harm these cats because all pets should be in the care of their human companions. Dogs at the end of a leash with his human on the other end caring for him/her. Cats should always be kept indoors, not be allowed to roam. The thought that they will be happier getting to go outside is old school and not true. Cats can have happy lives of 20 years or more in the comforts of their homes.
Sitting in the window sill, soaking in the sun, wishing that darn glass wasn't between him/her and that tasty bird, mouse, or squirrel! All animals need the freedom they were born with, including cats, dogs and people.
Yes, he is one sick, perverted SOB, and will undoubtedly move up to two-legged targets and higher caliber ammunition at some point in the future. When I was young, one of my high school classmates was an abuser of animals, and everyone but a select, deranged few avoided his company. All of those people have spent large portions of their lives in jail, or the hospital after being wounded in bar fights. If any of them are now dead, nobody I know seems to know or care. They won't be missed. Neither will this turd, if someone gets luck and puts a cap in his azz.
Scout-one knows nothing about cats. Cats can be very happy being kept indoors as long as they have company, food, are played with, and given lots of loving attention by their owners. My indoor cat is pampered to the max and is very happy. She greets us every day at the door when we get home from work. My husband picks her up and carries her around on one arm, all the while she's purring, purring away, and she then gets her daily dose of kitty treats. Cats love their daily routine. My indoor cat is one very happy kitty! So don't give me that bunk that indoor cats can't be happy.
Feral cats have been pests for ages, and states and even countries have laws governing feral animals. Feral animals can include not only cats, but dogs, goats, pigs, etc., and cause large amount of property destruction. When I first glanced at the headline, I thought at first of owls. Usually in late fall when the owlets of that years hatch are big enough to hunt on their own, there is a rash of complaints about cats being injured. To a young owl, cats and rabbits are about the same thing. Cats who escape the owl attack return to their owners with large puncture wounds from the owls talons, which unknowing cat owners attribute to neighbors. If you have a pet cat, keep it inside. If you have a barn cat, expect mortality.
I disagree. I was raised in a house that almost always had at least 1-2 cats and my mom would let them go outside. Yes, bad things can happen when outside.....cars, jerks, other animals.....but, that does not mean awful things are going to happen.
My mon took excellent care of our cats. A couple did come to sad endings.....just never coming back home, but most of the cats I had through my childhood ended up lving full happy lives. They were allowed to come and go during the day, and were in for the night.
Having said that, the cats I have now, I keep as indoor cats. I think it's a personal choice and it is based on where someone lives. As long as the person is RESPONSIBLE and CARING of their cats, I don't think there is general rule on whether cats should be indoor or outdoor.
Just please be responsible. They rely on us.
Your State Department of Fish and Game, or Department of Natural Resources, in accordance with your local sheriff's department will have adequate information concerning the status and control of feral animals. If for instance the keeping of pigeons in your area is legal, the property owner of those pigeons could destroy raiding cats. Some communities have ordinances which deal with free running dogs, but not cats, but that is a community by community basis. Due to diseases such as feline distemper, which can be devastating to desired wildlife species, free ranging cats are destroyed on sight, not by local ordinance, but by state law. As long as your cat stays on your property you should be in good shape for the wellbeing of your pet, but once that pet strays off of your property, hope for the best, but don't expect it when it comes up missing or injured.
Good post Rob.
SOB.....I'd put a bullet in his head myself. sick piece of garbage.
I agree Rob, this is just horrible.
Rob
When you do it and you go on trial I hope I am on the Jury. You will walk out a free man....all charges...NOT GUILTY!!!
"Sumpthin's gwanna happen to a human bean..." So, like WHAT, exactly? Is this a threat-by-cop or is it speculation about cat revenge by the ninja feline hit squad of kitty mama's?
Off your meds again?
Handy, if you can't read, or can't understand what you read or if you just didn't read the article at all, then try watching the video... repeatedly until you understand the meaning of the few simple sentences that will answer your question. If you were just trying to be funny, then you failed. I would say to someone like you, that it won't be so funny when this sadist turns to doing the same to innocent people in the future... but you might just make jokes about those human victims, too. Those lacking in empathy never feel a thing until they find themselves at the receiving end of cruelty and only then do they cry like the victims they made light of. That's why, when some people find articles like this "funny," I'd say we need to worry about THEM, too.
People these are just cats. The money spent on that cat could have gave a hungry child a meal. Maybe even payed on our national dept.
Have you priced an alley cat lately? Not even gonna put a dent in the debt, or fill a hungry stomach with a thimble full of rice. Maybe a persian or something might fetch some groceries.
manowar....something you dont get......they are not "just cats"....they are our pets.....members of our family.
If you are unable to understand that, I feel sorry for you. But, do realize for most of us......our pets are like members of the family.
MANOWAR1- You are so heartless. You think it's ok for a living, breathing animal with a beating heart who feels torture and pain to suffer just because they're a cat and not a human? What makes you think you're so above everything else? Animals, just like children, rely on us to help them and protect them--they rely on our voice because they don't have one! This is why so many people are giving up on humanity- so damn selfish and cruel.
Not to mention Addy121, when you are down sad or sick they always seem to make us smile. It don't matter if it is a cat or a dog. God bless these helpless creatures.
Yes, they do Carol! :)
I very happily spend my money on two cats and a dog that I took in from a shelter. These animals are my companions, and while you may not see their value, I do.
I'm sure I could point things out in your life that you don't need, and that you should giving your money to someone else, but it's none of my business. Just like how pet owners spend their money is really none of yours.
If they ran a news report everytime a baby was aborted iI wonder how many would condone it and how many would call it for what it truly is, MURDER!! The baby in the womb has feelings but no rights, how F'ed up is that!! I guess that since it's legal to KILL an unborn baby that justifies it.
Here! Here! Bravo! Ding Ding Ding Ding! We have a thinker folks!
Willis- I think you're on the wrong article. This one is about the slaying of living animals, not unborn babies.
If it hasn't been born, it can't be a baby.
scout-one
Here! Here! Bravo! Ding Ding Ding Ding! We have a thinker folks!
By this "logic" .... It's okay for someone to kill and torture cats and people shouldn't feel badly about it because people have abortions.
Ding ding ding... plug brain into electrical supply before attempting to operate.
Mymomdidnotraiseafool,
it must have been your brother or sister....I have my doubts about you
You don't have to be a psychic for this one - I put the odds at 99% it's a male between 15-25 y/o
I do believe that if an individual can kill an animal, it's just a step away from killing a human.
Young men are almost always the ones killing others in schools and movie theaters....and little animals when they are kids. (we all know the boys that blew up frogs, killed squirrels ....and cats)
Has there even ever been an instance where a girl went in and shot up a school or movie theater?
Why are so many young boys/men these days so heartless, uncaring and deadly!
I think it's because we are raising our boys wrong..... to be the toughest and to not show feelings...etc...etc...etc.
PS: My son saw a couple of young boys around 10 years old....throwing kittens that they found ...across a road into woods..just for fun a about 6 months ago. He says he wasn't sure what they were throwing. He approached the boys and they ran leaving the last kitten..which we now have....what the hell is wrong with some little boys!
This is why everyone who has children should own a pet...teaches children empathy for a living things.
I agree we are raising our boys wrong, but, it's not because of being the toughest or showing no feelings. It's because of the pansy @$$, politically correct, let's reward bullies with ice cream and participation trophies, instead of an @$$ whipping society being pushed on us by whimps who never got told NO as children!
scout-one
Your post is SO politically incorrect, I don't know where to start.
BUT I agree 100%!!!!!
I did not mean the price of the cat. I was talking about the money spent investigating and medical care for the cat.
You're still just as heartless.
It don't matter the cost. This is just not human doing this to an animal period!
It don't matter the cost. This is just not human doing this to an animal period!
How long before this sick, twisted, sob graduates from terrorizing and killing small animals, to doing the same thing on children? I hope they find this guy before he strikes again.
So many people responding who have overactive imaginations believing this person is headed towards being a serial human killer. They may be good fiction novel writers. The more realistic belief is that this person is an ordinary homeowner who is sick and tired of their neighbor's cats roaming on their property. Cats are notorious for sleeping on top of cars and leave their paw prints all over it. If not declawed they can also scratch the car's paint. The preferred means of cat removal would be to capture and turn over to animal control. Unfortunately for the cats, this person is being more sinister. If you love your pets, keep them inside. One of my neighbors has seven cats and continues to allow them to be outdoor cats. She lost one recently after it got hit by a car.
It's one thing to be getting rid of a pest, it's a completely different thing to shoot a cat, then kick it to sever its spine and leave it for dead. Or to sever a cat's head completely off.
That's the mark of someone incredibly cruel minded. And it's not that far of a stretch to think this person has the potential to turn into someone who can harm people. Most serial killers start out that way.
It is not overactive imagination at all. "Ordinary home owners" don't kill and torture cats and then place their heads in the middle of traffic intersections for all to see. He's looking to shock "ordinary people" and he's succeeding and he's enjoying that. You think he's not disturbed? Educate yourself... and, if reading about how people who enjoy killing people start out in life, then be careful because you obviously don't know much about potentially dangerous people and don't want to learn what to watch for.
FLRiptide - You obviously have not done any research on the backgrounds of well-known serial killers. There used to be a section of stories on the Tru-TV website that chronicled serial killers, and every one of them started out by killing domestic pets.
Now we are getting some good thinking. I agree completly keep them put up on your own property.
Most definitely NOT a cat person.
Dogs rule!! I've tolerated cats owned by my wife and daughter. Always indoors.
This is probably how Adam Lanza started out. They better catch this azzhole now and get him into a mental institution before he graduates to human prey.
I believe earn-a-cat is the best way to deal with this.
PRober, you are an idiot. To even mention Ted Nugent's name on something like this is absurd and shows how little you knoe about REAL AMERICANS. Ted Nugent is a TRUE CONSERVATIONIST, unlike you who hides behind a bigfoot pic. He has forgotten more about guns and our 2nd Right as Americans than your stupid ass will ever know. Ted Nugent does not run around blasting innocent animals for fun, how ever he will shoot an animal and eat it, just as many REAL AMERICANS do. I am proud there are AMERICANS like Ted Nugent who stand up for OUR RIGHTS given to us in the CONSTITUTION and in the BILL OF RIGHTS, maybe you should read them and stop being a friggin dumb ass and learn what the true nature of a person is and what they stand for before you casually toss out a name.
Ted Nugent's an azzh0le and a bully. He deserves to get his tail whupped.
Ted Nugent is a deranged, narcissistic bunghole, has been "musician", who relishes every moment his name is in the press. He'd probably shoot unicorns if he got the chance.
How horribly sad, this is heartbreaking. How could anyone hurt a helpless little creature. He should be treated the same way when caught. This just makes me sick. The sorry POS
I have never thought of myself as a serial cat killer. I have to admit I shot a few.
Sounds like you and that loser are made for each other. You certainly deserve each other. It would be poetic justice if one of the cats bit you as its last act, and you succumbed to the infection.
Sick bastard!
What a nice culture we have created!!! Can't wait for those little microbes to evolve and wipe 99% of the crap off of this planet.
??????
While what this individual did is by OUR standards sick, don't forget that in other places, dogs and cats are nothing more than a food source, along with rats, monkeys, snakes, and any number of other animals and even insects.
So any cat outside is fair game? If I see someone shooting at my cats I'll shoot back.
I'd rather track them to their home, and at my convenience, gut them, skin them, and fillet them, to be fed to feral cats and dogs.
Then you would be charged with attempted murder. Though treated as family members, pets are treated as property under the law. Also, how can someone tell if an outdoor cat is a pet or a feral cat? I've yet to see a cat wearing a collar. Any small animal that comes into my fenced yard is fair game for my dogs. They instinctively chase anything that moves. One cat already met this fate and I never did learn the owner's identity.
Yeah, we get it, Ripper. You hate cats, and are pleased when your dogs rip them to shreds.