The London Humane Society is hoping it will be able to find the person who shot a cat in the leg, forcing the amputation of the severely injured limb.
Jade the cat, pictured above, got out of her home in the Commissioners Rd. and Viscount Rd. area. When she returned Thursday evening, her owner noticed that she was limping. When the limp persisted into the next day, the cat's owner took her to a veterinarian. An X-ray revealed a foreign object and considerable damage to the bone.
Humane Society Executive Director Judy Foster says the vet recommended amputation.
"As that information was filtered to her [the owner) on Friday, she had to make a decision on the weekend," says Foster. "On Monday, the surgery was done."
Foster says they have yet to determine for certain whether the foreign object is a pellet or a bullet, saying the X-ray suggests it is larger than a pellet.
The cat is recovering, but Foster says the incident has placed a burden on her owner.
"There is a significant cost for this pet owner as well," says Foster. "Amputating a pet's leg is a costly veterinarian bill. Not to mention the owner is very upset that this has happened to her cat and her cat has to adjust to life with three legs."
Foster adds this is not the only troubling incident of animal mistreatment in our area lately.
"In the last several days, we've had a high volume of these types of calls come in to us," says Foster. "A week ago Sunday, a runner was out and found a rabbit that had been beheaded and was left just a few feet off the running path. And this is actually the second domestic pet that we've had shot in the area. The last one was in Middlesex, while this one was in London."
Anyone with any information is asked to call the London Humane Society.