Cruel humanity
Work. Lunch time. On my way to pick up a few things I noticed a white cat milling around in the parking lot; he had no collar. Half affectionate and half timid. I went inside and while I waited at the counter, the cat came over to the glass doors and sat just outside.
I got a look at a decrepit right eye socket and its tattered hair exposed a discolored portion of skin from the face down to the right collar bone. At the lower neck, a clump of white fur and dried organic material daringly hung like a wretched badge of the animal’s will to survive. The eye disturbed me as a series of morbid colors leaked from a laceration across its face, I assumed the culprit of the wound claimed the missing eye.
The most vivid thing was not the stale wounds etched across the pale creature’s visage, but the sparks of life it desperately poured out through its one good eye. I’m not sure why, but I had a sudden flash to a desperate human victim, lying on their back, gasping for air, as they harbored some gruesome injury. I had always assumed if I was ever in such a situation the greatest source of trauma would come from the person’s wounds, but now I believe it might come from the desperate and panicked look upon their face. Someone once said “the eyes are the windows to the soul,” so maybe one could be terribly scarred by having to watch it suffer through them.
I compulsively borrowed a pair of gloves from my friend Jim who worked at the place and went outside. I called the cat over and after a moment of maneuvering and calm voice, the cat came to me. I picked him up told him everything would “be OK” and put him in my car. He didn’t smell any better than he looked.
I dropped him off at the SPCA and after being unable to answer any intelligent questions in regard to his origins, I left him in the charge of the shelter.
I had a feeling that he’d be put down. Stray cat, thin, dirty, injured and who knows what else. Not to mention the expense of nursing it back to health… and who would want to adopt a freaky looking cat with one eye anyways… (half way back to the office I had myself talked into the idea).
The eye looked infected and after fall comes winter. I could imagine an alternative fate for the creature. Crying in some random, cold, dark corner of Norwich, unfed, sick with infection and probably out of its mind with delirium. I didn’t ask and they didn’t tell, but I silently hoped he’d recover.
Next day, 9 a.m. Phone rings and I answer. Woman’s voice. “Uh… Hi, is this Tyler Murphy? Yesterday I think you picked up my cat and brought him to the SPCA. I just wanted you to know that shortly after you dropped him off… he was euthanized.”
A nearby neighbor inquired to Jim about her cat and he had explained my ironic humanity. She told me she had tried repeatedly to contact the shelter, but by the time she had it was too late. The SPCA, who knows far more about animal biology than I, decided the animal was suffering greatly or dying and met the criteria for immediate termination. He was put to sleep in order to ease his burdens.
The woman, Barbara, said her cat’s name was Mowmow and that he had cancer. According to her, he was on the road to recovery and had been to the veterinarian not too long ago. He was an indoor cat, she said, who had escaped outside. I explained the cat looked to be in poor condition, but that’s all I can honestly describe because like I said, I know nothing of animal biology, only human compassion… and guilt.
October 17th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
Don’t feel guilty—that was the kindest thing that could have happened to that cat. Fortunately we can still decide when it that “time” for an animal unlike relatives and friends we have to watch fight until the bitter end.
October 17th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
You did the best you could Tyler. You didn’t just turn a blind eye as so many would, but you made the effort to get the cat the attention that he appeared to need. Far better than leaving it to starve uncared for. You couldn’t have done more.
October 17th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
I think the SPCA could have waited a little while so that the owner had a better chance of contacting them first. They should have a lost and found hotline which is checked at least every hour.
The SPCA and vets should also offer microchipping so that pets can have a chip which could be scanned as soon as they enter the SPCA, and reunited with their owners immediately.
Don’t feel guilty, you did the right thing.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:23 am
Good Job for taking the poor thing to the SPCA. With all the stuff it had going on it would have been easy prey for another animal and with limited eyesight could have gotten hit by a car or caused and accident. Disease could have been passed to other peoples pets or children. Thanks for Caring and acting on a situation others passed by, the owner should have thanked you for not just looking away
October 18th, 2007 at 10:39 am
If Barbara needs a replacement for MowMow, I have new kittens almost ready to find new homes. She can message me here.
I am sorry things turned out this way and Tyler I do not blame you.
October 18th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
Thanks folks for not yelling at Tyler— I think he felt bad enough!!
October 18th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
What an honorable thing to do ! I would be proud to have a son or spouse like you !( which I have both ) Thank you Tyler……..I’m sure that Mow Mow thanks you too !
October 18th, 2007 at 2:23 pm
The cat was owned by a friend of mine. The cat was not starving or homeless. The cat was under vet. care. The cat was also tattooed by the SPCA. They made no effort to find the owner. It was the owners right to be notified and make that decision. As Tyler stated, the cat was friendly and shy, not an deaths door. The SPCA has recently taken opon themselves to call to many shots in the name of humanity. They are euthanizing animals at a rapid rate of speed. This information come sfrom the employees and volunters at the shelter.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
I am Maomao’s owner, and I do not blame Tyler for what happened to my cat. I too would have brought an injured animal to the spca for care. I didn’t relise it was the spca’s policy to euthanize injured animals. I thought they were a caring compassionate organization. My cat was euthanized with in 4 hours not giving me time to even know she was missing until it was to late. She has been under vet care for her cancer since January and was not suffering at this time. Her eye looked horrible as would any animals or person for that matter who had cancer. When the time came that Mao Mao stopped eating or was in pain of any kind I would have had her put down, but for now her quality of life was not effected only her looks.
I believe she should not have been put down and the SPCA should have waited. Giving me time to find her. Mao had a tattoo from the SPCA and they should have tried to contact me. Unfortunatly because of their lack of compassion or their ignorance my family and I were unable to say goodbye to our beloved pet.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
I feel what Tyler did was the right thing. But what the SPCA did was wrong!! What happened to giving the animal and owner a chance to find each other? What is the purpose of having a shelter if they are just going to kill everything that comes through the door? My dog has a tattoo now I’m worried that if something ever happened and he was brought there, would they look for a tattoo and contact me?! What is the purpose of identification if its going to be ignored? And I know that the SPCA does not have a vet on staff so who determined the animal was suffering and on deaths doors? The SPCA needs to stand up and answer some worrisome questions, or Norwich needs to find an organization to replace them who actually cares about our animals!!
October 19th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
You did the right thing Tyler, you had no way of knowing how the SPCA was going to handle it.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
Maybe a little investigation should be done in our SPCA. If the kitty was tattooed, they would have known in minutes who the owner was. Why was such a thing so quickly dismissed as terminal without at least trying to learn the kitty’s history? As a lover of cats (Luna is the name of my kitty) I read Tylers post and it nearly put me to tears, first because of the condition of the kitty, but at the end of the article, because it was so quickly killed by the SPCA. I thought they were an organization that was commited to helping animals. First thing they should have done was try to find the owner. At least give it a meal and 24 hours to be claimed. I would have thought they would have a policy to at least wait a day for an owner to come for it.
October 20th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
Most of the law relates to dogs but says that cats can be euthanized after a few days if no owners claim it. This cat had a tattoo and an owner. I do hope something is done about this.
NY State Ag and Market Law -
7-a. Any dog or cat in the custody of a pound or shelter shall be made available for adoption or euthanized subject to the provisions of subdivisions two-a, two-b, two-c, two-d, and two-e of section three hundred seventy-four of this chapter after the time for redemption has expired.
8. The redemption periods set forth above in this section notwithstanding, any municipality may establish the duration of such periods by local law or ordinance, provided that no such period shall be less than three days, except that where notice to the owner is given by mail, no such period shall be less than seven days.
http://www.agmkt.state.ny.us/AI/AGM_ART_7.html
October 22nd, 2007 at 1:13 pm
I’d like to say thank you to catdoglady. I also found some interesting information under Article 26 section 374. which I believe states my cat should have been examined by a licenced Veternarian and certified in writing that the cat needed to be euthanized. If not she should have been held for 5 days. Thank you again, Mao’s owner
http://www.agmkt.state.ny.us/AI/AGM_ART_26.pdf
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:32 am
You’re very welcome. I hope something can be done to prevent this from happening again. Feel free to contact me, I’ll give Tyler my email address.
November 16th, 2007 at 8:14 pm
What an unfortunate thing that has happened…I can believe the SPCA did what they did….Was the tattoo readable? I know over time they could fade.. If it wasn’t then SHAME on them.. The current Director is the one the ended the tattoo program over 2 years ago.(after many, many years) She is also the one that most likely said that cat was suffering, didn’t bother looking for the tattoo and was probably the one that euthanized the cat..You want to make your feelings known..Talk to their Board of Directors..