A cat that suffered two gunshot wounds had to have a front leg amputated after one bullet shattered its leg.
The injury shocked animal hospital staff and the woman who discovered the injured cat last week. It is not known who is responsible for shooting, but the incident has been reported to RCMP and the SPCA.
Shannon Wood was in her back yard in Sturgeon County when a neighbourhood cat wandered by with an obviously injured front leg.
Wood saw what she said looked like a tooth mark in the cat’s chest along with the hanging leg.
“He was super friendly, just obviously in distress and hurt,” said Wood.
Due to his injury, she contacted Mission Ridge Animal Hospital in St. Albert where the cat was admitted.
After examining the X-ray of the injured leg, vets determined that the mark in the cat’s chest was actually a bullet hole. The X-ray showed bullet fragments still lodged in the leg.
Clinic manager, Debra Briton, said it appeared that a small copper tip bullet had gone through the cat’s chest and into the leg. The bones in the leg were shattered and another bullet hole was also found there.
The cat – that animal hospital staff named Gunther for being a gunshot survivor – underwent surgery to amputate his leg on June 23. Briton said that his personality won over the staff of the hospital. They wanted to give the gentle cat a second chance.
“He’s just such a sweet cat. For going through what he went through he’s got the sweetest demeanor. He’s so affectionate,” said Briton.
The incident was shocking to Wood and her neighbours.
“We’re all kind of in disbelief that this cat had been around the neighbourhood for weeks and nobody knows anything about how he got hurt or when it even happened,” she said.
This isn’t the first time an animal has been found injured in the area though. Wood said this is the second shooting she is aware of. She’s worried for her own cat that returned home approximately two months ago with an injury. She said she is considering taking her cat to the vet to get checked for bullets. Wood is also a mother and the incident has made her question the safety of her family.
“The reason we moved to the country is because you want the kids to have a better life and be safe and to be able to ride their bikes out front. The last thing you want to worry about is somebody shooting,” said Wood. “Especially with animals, it’s kind of worrisome that somebody’s targeting animals.”
Briton was also saddened by the situation.
“Your first thought is, how can anybody ever do this to something,” she said.
She advised anyone who notices an animal wandering in a neighbourhood to either contact the owner if possible or a rescue society.
Gunther is currently in recovery at the hospital. He remains a loving patient during the post-surgery stages. Briton said that they are in no hurry to have him adopted at the moment. They will search for his forever home after they are sure he has recovered well.
“When the right home comes along we would love for him to go to a loving home that would appreciate him,” said Briton.
