SPCA: Kitten Thrown From Moving Truck On Highway

 BY MATTHEW CURATOLO

Ogdensburg Advance News, Sunday, August 28, 2005
lupdate 2005 08 28

A Scared Tabby kitten after being thrown from a moving truck

This is a very lucky kitten.  The outcomes are usually much worse.  Broken and twisted almost beyond recogntion sometimes, it's amazing they can even be alive, but they can be, experiencing terrifc pain such as no living being should have to go through.  

The kitten lays in its cage, its back leg positioned awkwardly underneath her body, her left leg broken.

But it's the kitten's wide eyes that tell the story.

 "She's terrified. Look at her eyes," said St. Lawrence Valley SPCA Board President Debbie Mitchell.

 The eight‑ to 10‑week‑old female kitten is the latest in an unfortunately long list of animal cruelty cases in the North Country.

 According to accounts from witnesses, the kitten was thrown out of the window of a black pickup truck while the vehicle going about 55 miles per hour down a highway Thursday afternoon, said Mitchell.

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She said that passersby stopped to check what was thrown, thinking maybe a shirt, and instead found the kitten along the highway.

 Mitchell said that since the kitten has been brought to the SPCA shelter –located just outside of Ogdensburg at 6718 state Highway 68‑ it has been made comfortable, fed and watered, and given a chance to recover from the shock.  (This isn't a new event around here.  After suffering such a trauma, it is not unusual for the kitten to be in shock for several days, literally  afraid of its own shadow, and to posess a morbid fear of humans and any other animal.)  

 "We're trying to give her a chance to calm down," she said.

 On Saturday, Mitchell said a thorough examination of the kitten by Dr. John "Jack" Zeh at Town and Country Veterinary Clinic determined that the small animal had sustained a broken leg, but is otherwise in good condition.

 "Anyone who can do that to an animal could do that to a child. It could lead to domestic violence or something far  worse," said Mitchell, who said she was appalled by the act.

 She pointed out that serial killers who have been caught and analyzed commonly exhibit a long history of animal cruelty, eventually leading u p to violence against humans.

 "Anyone capable of doing this to an animal is disturbed," said Mitchell, adding that this is just one in a long line of examples of animal cruelty at the hands of local residents.  

 Another example are unwanted animals being dropped off in random places in the severe heat of summer or cold of winter.

 Just last month, someone dropped off two crates with cats in them outside of the shelter in the intense July heat. Three escaped and one was killed by a passing vehicle on the highway, according to Mitchell.

 This act isn't the only case the SPCA has seen like this with animals being tossed from vehicles, and Mitchell laments that it won't be the last.

 "If you witness an act of animal cruelty like this then call the police," said Mitchell, who added that vigilance by the public will help cut down on such acts.

 In 2004, the St. Lawrence Valley SPCA had 400 dogs and 700 cats in its facility. Currently, the shelter has 40 dogs and 60 cats. With five board members and only three regular volunteers, help in the form of volunteers and dog walkers is "desperately" needed, according to Mitchell.  Due to unforeseen circumstances, volunteers and assistants have been lost, increasing the load on all involved with the Shelter operations.  If you can spare the time and love animals as we do, won't you consider checking to see if there is anything YOU can do to help?  

 If you are interested in volunteering, call Volunteer Services at 393‑3624 or stop in during regular open hours Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 1‑4 p.m., and Thursday from 2‑6 p.m.

From the Webmaster:
What do YOU think?  Is there any way this could have been an honest mistake, an error, and accidental?  Maybe the little child was "only" playing with the kitten and it jumped right out the window!  Would that be excusable?  No!  It wouldn't.  The child may not be directly at fault, but his parents/guardian/s are/were clearly at fault.  
   More likely the kitten was purposely thrown from the moving car by an adult who knew better.  Making it even worse, what if this were a litter of kittens?  What if one was tossed out the window every mile or so, maybe on different roads, simply because they didn't want the kittens.  Or worse yet, perhaps it was an act of "joy" for some perverted soul or souls who enjoy inflicting pain on others and the kittens were handy?
   If it was any kind of "accident" by any stretched defintion, then the car would have stopped to check on the well being of the poor kitten, wouldn't it?  From the account given, it didn't even slow down.  No, this was no accident.  Like the last one thrown from a speeding car, this was done on purpose by a very perverted person or persons.  S/he/it belongs in jail and will likely be there for one reason on another rather soon, but not soon enough.  
   It has been pretty well shown in many studies that such people as these must be will inflict nearly the same serious injury and abuse upon their own pets, their own children, spouses and friends eventually, and no one weaker will be safe around them.