Lock Your Doors! They're Going to Shoot Your Cat

I read this article in my local paper this morning and was pretty horrified. Is this really such a common practice?

Am I only so upset because I'm very much a cat person? Surely there are better ways to "dispose" of animals, right? If the cat really was sick, would it be that difficult to contact a vet? I'd hate to think that if one of my cats got out of my house, they could be shot in the head.

 

IMO, not at all. My ex is very much a cat person, and is on talking terms with almost all the cats in the neighborhood. I've therefore come to get to know them too. The idea that 'shoot cat in head' is the first choice is horrendous.

On a flip-side which does not lighten an iota of my sadness, in fact makes it worse, is that given that is how the law is in that part of the world, that cat should have been tagged. One tag, and I bet a phone call would have been made first. A tag is IMO necessary anywhere, but the owners should have done the safety-research to know that it was especially necessary in this location, and 7 years is a long time to remain ignorant.

The story about the neighbour and the relative sounds very odd to me. And a cat which has been around for 7 years, even if kept home most of the time, would be easly recognizeable.

Bottom line, though. Totally upsetting

 

I'm a cat person, we have 3 cats, Hocus, Pocus, and Salem. I love those cats, and we consider them a part of the family. The thought of someone shooting one of them, or anyone else's cat in the head is unbearable. The cat was panting.... umm ok, did the cat try to attack you? Even so, a police officer felt it necessary to shoot the cat? Apparently, this officer shouldn't be allowed near a road race or it will become a blood bath as people will be panting everywhere. There was just no need for this, he should be written up for animal cruelty.

 

"I thought I saw a gun". Police are just lying again. They can say anything in a report. (half joking)

Did the "local paper" editorialize?
How big is Lebanon?
Expanding the SPCA services would cost millions.
So the city needs a volunteer agency and policy change. Complicated.

I watch animal shows on TV, so yeah, I find this very disturbing.

 

It's definitely disturbing, and just really sad.

Lebanon is a fairly small town close to the city I live in. Just looked it up - they have a population of approximately 20,000 people. I'm not sure how many pet owners would have ever been aware that this kind of policy is in place. I have a few friends who are police officers in my city - I'll have to check with them to see if we have any similar policies in place. I wonder just how common this practice is.

So far, no editorial by the paper, though it wouldn't surprise me to see one written before the weekend is up.

 

We'll never know if not having a tag would have made a difference. Maybe so, mere speculation at this point. But it does give the police officer an alibi.

Taking the cat to a vet could have meant several hundred dollars of care. Who would be responsible for payment since there was no tag to identify the owner?

I believe all pet owners have the responsibility to properly tag their animals. Whether the lack of a tag excuses the actions here, I can't say.

 

Hang on ... shoegirl ... I need my brain testing.

"Lebanon" ... I simply assumed that you were in the middle-east.

Then a moment ago, I reread and saw:
City Manager Pat Clements
The Warren County Dog Warden

Which country is this?

 

I believe there is a Lebanon in Pennsylvania.

Animals can lose their tags if they've been out for a while. Besides, a tagless pet could also be micro-chipped as that is very common these days.
I've never heard of a practice like this. And really don't see any excuse for it. A neighbor complained about the cat and it was panting so I shot it in the head? Bullshit. I get the feeling that's not the whole story.

 

Thanks MM

Then I'm even more shocked and yes, the story sounds so odd.

Dang it

 

The Lebanon in question is in Ohio, actually.

What a terrible story Although I have to ask, who calls the police over a cat? Seriously? I wonder if calling Animal Services would have changed the outcome. And, like MM said, a lot of pets are microchipped these days, so even with no tags, they can still be identified and reunited with their owners.

Poor kitty

 

As a cat owner, reading this makes my head swim. I don't even know what to say about how everyone acted in this story. From the neighbor to the police officer, that is just a stunning display of cruelty and short-sightedness. That police officer should be fired, or at least relegated to desk duty, because someone who can so casually shoot at cat in the head for being "non-responsive and panting" is definitely not the kind of person I want protecting me or allowed to carry a gun. Seriously? A cat didn't respond to you so you thought he had rabies? I'd have killed my cats 1000 times by now if I thought they had rabies every time they didn't respond to me. They're fucking cats. They deal with you on their terms, not yours.

It's also already been said, but it sounds like law enforcements needs to learn real quick that an animal without tags =/= a stray. Tags can come off easily (especially if you're a responsible cat owner who uses a tear away collar so your animal won't choke itself) and virtually all pets are microchipped. If you "can't transport an animal in a city vehicle" call animal control and have them scan the damn thing. Seriously how hard is that? Not to be biased against a dog, but this wasn't a howling, drooling doberman or pit bull or something. It was a house cat. Worst comes to worst it runs away while you're trying to get someone else out there. Ugh, and to just toss it in the trashcan.....inhuman monsters.

Feeling a little sick now.

 

Good point about the possibility of the cat being chipped, MM. No reason for a tag in that case, unless there is a city ordinance requiring one.

 

I thought there was a LOT of paper work when an officer discharges his weapon.
Killing the cat was his best option, time-wise?

 

the notion that ANY city or town would have a police policy to shoot cats first, then maybe ask a question should have the entire population of that city/town in an uproar demanding a change. The fact that most people don't care about it says volumes about us.

 

Yes. A very dear friend of mine has gone to oodles of trouble and expense to organise the rehousing of a mother and kittens that she hardly even knows. She'd be in an uproar. All kudos to her, and shame on those who hold life cheaply.

 

I am not a cat person, but when your first action, and in fact your written policy says to shot a cat to kill it....well that's just cruel and unusual. Honestly a cat is going to do that much damage. Most cats I've ever encountered would run the other way. It never ceases to amaze me some of the things local cops have policies on.

 

I forget where in the country you live, but up here in the Northeast we've had huge problems with rabies for 10+ years and any wild or stray animal that shows possible signs will be shot, recovered by Animal Control in a hazmat bag and any blood bleached, and the animal tested for rabies. The number one priority is taking it in for a brain tissue analysis (the animal will be killed anyway) while preventing contact with humans or other animals.

 

From Yahoo movies - its been in a lot of newspapers for the last week
Segal Shoots Puppy
Did you know that action star Steven Seagal is a reserve deputy Sheriff? If not, then you probably also didn’t know he has a reality show on A&E in the States called ‘Steven Seagal: Lawman’.

Now it seems the Lawman may be in a bit of trouble with... well, the law... after the show filmed a raid at Jesus Sanchez Llovera’s Arizona house back in March. Llovera alleges that Seagal arrived in full riot gear sitting on a tank.

Not only that, but TMZ reports that Llovera’s 11-month-old puppy was apparently shot and killed during the raid, along with over 100 roosters that Seagal and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department thought were being raised for illegal cockfighting.
[Video chatter: Funnyman Steve Carell and Julianne Moore on 'Crazy Stupid Love']
Llovera claims that the roosters are merely “for show”, and therefore the raid was “unfounded”. He’s served Seagal and Sheriff Joe Arpaio with a document which is the first step towards a lawsuit.

Neither A&E, the Maricopa County authorities, or Seagal himself have commented on the claims, but the whole episode was reportedly captured on camera for ‘Steven Seagal: Lawman’, so Llovera should have plenty of evidence if it goes to court.

He wants $100,000 in damages and a written apology to his children from Seagal for the death of “a beloved family pet”.

So, doth Llovera protest too much? Or was it a reality show stunt gone too far? Time will tell.
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Roosters were killed by this lot rather than calling animal control. As with the cat - whats wrong with law enforcement calling in the professionals in like instances.

 

whats it like to live in that kind of fear and paranoia?

 

Terrible. Animals knock over the garbage shed, I get a scratch myself cleaning it up that barely breaks skin, and even though I know on an intellectual level that the risk is effectively zero, I spend the next week cringing every time I look at that scratch because I know that if I do get infected, by the time symptoms show up I'm as good as dead. Not just dead, slow, painful dead

We've had two raccoons picked up by animal control on my street this summer and both tested positive. Over the past 10 years, there have been a few dozen wild animals and at least one pet infected. The Department of Public Health declared my neighborhood a rabies hot spot about ten years ago and according to local animal control people it's still an area of concern. At least during the day I can see a drunk-looking raccoon stumbling down the street. Between the coyotes, the recent string of mountain lion sightings, and the occasional bear in the area (a few years ago I had my scanner on and heard a call for a bear in the playground of a nearby daycare,) I'm a lot more comfortable tucking my short shotgun into my waistband (under my shirt so I don't scare the neighbors) just in case.