Posted on 12/18/2008 7:31:38 AM PST by Born Conservative
ROSS TWP. – Three kittens with ear, neck and tail piercings were removed from a home by humane officers on Wednesday.
One of the officers from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Luzerne County said the pierced kittens were being sold as “gothic kittens” on an Internet auction site.
“This is a first,” said Officer Carol Morrison. “It’s unbelievable anybody would do this to kittens.”
Morrison said the investigation began about a week ago when a man from another state noticed “gothic kittens” being sold on eBay. The kittens were also being sold on a pet classified Web site with an attached picture of a pierced kitten.
“You’re not allowed to sell live animals on eBay,” Morrison said.
The man called the phone number that was listed with the kittens, and traveled to the home at 71 Dobson Road, where he saw the pierced kittens, Morrison said.
“He called us and explained what he saw,” Morrison said.
Morrison and two humane officers obtained a search warrant for the home from District Judge John Hasay in Shickshinny at about 3:30 p.m.
Assisted by the state police at Shickshinny, the humane officers traveled to the home located at the end of a long driveway in a remote area of Ross Township.
Humane officers and troopers were inside the home for more than an hour before removing three kittens and a cat just before 5:30 p.m.
“She (the homeowner) thought it was a great idea (to pierce kittens),” Morrison said.
Morrison said charges are likely to be filed against the homeowner.
A dog inside the home was also found with pierced ears, Morrison said.
Morrison said the homeowner has a pet grooming business in the basement of the residence. Several signs advertising “Pawside Parlor” were along Dobson Road and in front of the home.
The kittens also had submission rings placed in their tails, Morrison said, explaining that the rings would prevent blood flow, causing the tails to fall off.
The homeowner and a young girl were inside the home. After humane officers removed the kittens in cages, the window shades were closed and interior lights were turned off.
Morrison said the kittens will be checked by a veterinarian before deciding if the kittens will be placed for adoption.
Think of this as a “kitten” ping...from fellow pet lover, paMom
I think she works at Starbucks.....
I don’t see a problem in tagging animals for practical purposes such as identification. I do a problem with it when it is just done for ‘decorative’ purposes. Cropping tails and ears is also a no-no for me. Spaying and neutering, on the other hand are usually positive things.
I can’t understand the earrings on babies thing. Parents don’t expect babies to pull them off and swallow them?
Yes coffee shops and piercing seem to go hand in hand. I prefer Dunkin myself.
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I always keep my animals on a leash. It's the responsible thing to do.
I have a comment, but it would probably be pulled rather quickly. Suffice it to say that that’s not the type of kitten people normally think of when they hear about body piercing.
Oh here we go with the old licenced vet BS. When we castrated pigs we did it with a razor blade and a spray bottle of iodine. Them purdy dobermans really are born with long tails and floppy ears. Here is my point, I may not agree with the practice of piercing a cats ear but I damn sure do not want it to be illegal.I would not want to see someone arrested or go to jail over it either.
How about this? If the headline read:
Three kittens WHO HAD BEEN DECLAWED were removed from a home by humane officers on Wednesday.Would anyone have raised a fuss????
That was my thought exactly. If you object to baby or child piercings you're told to shut up and mind your own business. But somehow cat piercings are something so horrible that it dictates that you take kittens away from someone practicing it? Beam me up Scotty!
Well worded to avoid being pulled....
Piercing the cats ears seems completely ok. Piercing the tail seems a bit much, especially since the article said that it would cause the cat’s tail to fall off. A cat’s tail is needed for balance and agility, and the slow process would seem to be painful. To spend the time in using Sheriffs and State officers for this appears to be a bit stupid. The local animal control officer should have been sent over to see the condition of the animals. If the condition looked fine, I would have no problem with the ear piercing but would need a vet’s input on the rest. This could easily have been done through the animal control officer, as is done in my county in Florida. To turn this into some big “raid” is rather stupid and a waste of law enforcement resources. Think about the fact not only of the piercings teenagers can get and parents who pierce their babies, but what about having baby boys “trimmed” before they leave the hospital? In terms of animals, what about clipping birds’ wings to keep them from flying off? Again, I say this is way overblown.
softpaws.com has an alternative...
It’s not ok to pierce a cat or dogs ears. They get caught on things and it gets infected. I agree about just using AC&C in this case.
So they do.
But I read some reviews at
And it looks like a lot of trouble for such a temporary fix.
At least they weren’t “cat juggling”
Tail docking is allowed, is it not? Spaying, neutering. I am not sure why this is so different.
And you think this characterization of the person in question is entirely fair? You make it sound like the person is getting off on the pain of small animals; whereas in reality the lady seems like a conscientious pet owner who probably loves her animals like here kids, despite having an unusual way of showing it.
In Pennsylvania, as in most states, there is a provision in the law for the appointment of specialized animal welfare officers. http://equineprotectionnetwork.com/cruelty/hspo.htm They are police officers, appointed by legal authority just like other law enforcement officers. Depending on the state or county, they may have authority to arrest people, and in all jurisdictions they have authority to seize animals from private property under specified circumstances. Make sure you know what you’re talking about if you try to interfere with one these officers by claiming they have no legal authority.
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