Posted on 01/25/2009 5:28:39 PM PST by Daffynition
BOISE -- A 12-year-old Caldwell boy has come forward to claim responsibility for the arrow found lodged in the head of a cat.
Prosecutors will decide whether the boy should be charged with animal cruelty.
The boy and his father told the Gem County Sheriff's Office he was protecting quail, but the question many are asking tonight is - does intention matter?
Gem County officials tell us that it is illegal to shoot at pets with a bow and arrow any time. But some are making the argument that this was a stray cat.
Jeff Rosenthal with the Idaho Humane Society says that does not matter.
"There's a feeling at least that this is something malicious and cruel," said Rosenthal.
A nine-month-old cat, now named Valentine, is recovering after a major surgery to remove an arrow from her head.
This interview came an hour before Wednesday's surgery.
"I think the arrow went through the eye and came out the back of the head," said Jeff Brourman who performed the surgery on Valentine.
A scan of the cat's head shows the arrow missed the brain by millimeters, but destroyed the left ear and eye.
(Related: Sheriff says 12-year-old boy shot cat in head with arrow)
"In a case like this we have to be concerned that this is something that is done purposefully," said Brourman.
Hours after this story was brought to the public's attention, the Gem County Sheriff's Office said that a 12 year-old neighbor of the person who brought the cat in claimed responsibility.
We went to their home Thursday, but they declined to comment.
Since Valentine is a stray, the closest thing to an owner would be the person who took the cat to West Vet.
That person said they would not press charges on the boy because they believe he is sorry for what he did and that this was an accident.
Jeff Rosenthal with the Idaho Humane Society disagrees.
"I don’t think it was accidental, I think the shot itself where it hit was, that part of it, I'm sure no one was that accurate, but I believe the child was intending to harm the cat sure," said Rosenthal.
We spoke with a lieutenant from Gem County Sheriff's Office just moments after he questioned the family and he said he has everything he needs to file his report. He'll turn it over to the prosecutor to decide whether to file charges. That decision likely won't be made until next week.
"Because it was a child there’s more of a, oh it’s a child out being mischievous, made a mistake. I still think it’s important to make an impact on that child. Make sure we don’t have anything else going on with the child as well," said Rosenthal.
Valentine will spend the night recovering from surgery, and then the plan is for Simply Cats, an all cat shelter, to come and pick her up and get her well enough to be adopted.
Simply Cats executive director Sheri Schneider tells us that around 75 people have shown interest in adopting the cat when she's ready.
Schneider says they will most likely hold a lottery to determine Valentine's new owner.
Rosenthal says the Humane Society maintains a toll-free animal cruelty and neglect hotline for people to report cases of animal cruelty, neglect or animal fighting.
Anyone with information on these forms of abuse is urged to call 1-866-430-9432.
Now that's cruel and unusual.
Just kidding cat people!
In a dusty old book that most don't read any more it says something like this; When the choice is between life and death, choose life.
That stupid animal can fend for it self in the wild naked and without any tools. Can you do the same?
Cats are the easiest animal to look after,now if i wanted to torture him i would get him a puppy and make him clean up after him and house break him.
Nothing more fun than cleaning up after the puppy when it S*it* at 5 in the morning
These threads bring out the bottom feeders. Worst of the worst on FR.
> In a dusty old book that most don’t read any more it says something like this; When the choice is between life and death, choose life.
Must be Aristotle because that isn’t in the Bible. Sometimes it is kinder to put an animal down than it is to make it go on living.
Cats rely on vision and hearing. This cat now has only 50% of these faculties. And it must live for the rest of its life without them. Might not see the dog or hear the car, next time.
Pooper scooping is a labor of love, really. I still have photos of all my dogs’ potty training episodes. Gosh, going back 20 years or so now all tolled, I guess. Would like to see them?
OK, its a brilliant animal. Lets bestow upon it all the rights of human beings. Now go become a vegetarian.
Research sez: Domestic kitties are the number one killer of small mammals and song birds.
Love nature? Keep your cat inside.
Make the kid work at the pound until he’s 18. If he does it again after that, Lock him up in prison.
You use a grenade launcher. Everybody knows that.
BUMP to that. And if that’s not convincing, cats can pick up all kinds of diseases they’re not equipped to fend off and be preyed upon themselves.
What I want to know is, what in the world was a child—one who seems little short on judgment and maturity—doing with a bow and arrow and no parent in sight? I’m all for teaching kids how to use a weapon correctly and responsibly, but I wouldn’t just turn them loose with one.
I despise cruelty to animals (yes, recklessness IS cruelty). I’ve been a vegetarian for twelve years, and so far that has failed to take away my concern for humans or turn me into an abortion supporter. The difference between me and PeTA is I can see a difference between shooting a deer and shooting a person. That, and I don’t advocate vandalism, terror, abuse, public nudity, perversion, abandonment of reason, turning animal rights into a national joke...hell, keep PeTA as far away from me as possible.
If morons who buy pets on an impulse would bother to spay and neuter them—if you can’t afford that, what makes you think you can afford to FEED the animal for fifteen or more years?—we wouldn’t have nearly as many problems with feral cats and dogs as we do.
A dogooder had animal control fix the feral cat "problem" in my neighborhood. (A city neighborhood) That problem was replaced by a rat and mouse explosion. We used to provide shelter for the cats in the winter. I kinda liked the cats better,
Jeff Rosenthal with the Idaho Humane Society disagrees. "I don’t think it was accidental, I think the shot itself where it hit was, that part of it, I'm sure no one was that accurate, but I believe the child was intending to harm the cat sure," said Rosenthal.
"Because it was a child there’s more of a, oh it’s a child out being mischievous, made a mistake. I still think it’s important to make an impact on that child. Make sure we don’t have anything else going on with the child as well," said Rosenthal.
You're quite a basketful of neuroses there, Jeff. Stop projecting yourself on this child.
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