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Thursday, December 11, 2008

Someone else be sickened, outraged and heartbroken with me...

From the St. Catherines Standard:

"Family devastated after their beloved cat tortured, left to die

Carrie Hawkes and her son, Devon, can't fathom it.

And yet Tuesday morning, when they saw the face looking back at them in the window of their Old Pine Trail townhome in north St. Catharines, they were forced to. It was their 10-year-old Maine Coon cat, Bailey. But the giant fluffball Carrie let out the night before was barely recognizable.

"Devon kept saying, 'It's not him, it's not him,' " Hawkes said.

She knew it was, though, despite the fact Bailey was soaking wet, and the tawny fur on his face and his long whiskers were missing. Devon, 15, grabbed a towel and went outside to scoop up Bailey.

That's when they started to piece together their pet's horrific ordeal.

"I thought he was freezing because he was soaking wet," Hawkes said. "Then we picked him up and I realized he was soaked in gasoline."

Bailey had been set on fire. His teeth and claws had been smashed. He had cuts on his brow. His ears were singed and what was left of them was "rock hard."

"He was gasping and gasping," Hawkes said.

Hawkes and Devon rushed Bailey to the vet, trying to reassure Bailey, their pet since he was a newborn kitten, and themselves that everything would be OK.

Bailey died en route.

"He was just so hurt. It took everything for him to get back (home)," Hawkes said.

"He took his last bit of energy to get here," Devon added.

The Lincoln County Humane Society is investigating.

Executive director Kevin Strooband said the animal was being sent to Guelph for a post-mortem to determine the extent of injuries and cause of death.

"Any animal who's caused discomfort by someone or something, if it can get away, it will. But if it can't...," Strooband said. "When you sit down and think, 'What did that cat go through,' it pulls at your heartstrings. How can it not?"

On Tuesday afternoon, the Hawkes family was trying to figure out how their companion, normally wary of other people, could have been victim to cruelty.

Hawkes had let Bailey out the night before. "He never goes far," she said.

He had his usual haunts. The wall behind their townhouse. Under Hawkes's car. In the family's enclosed backyard.

Before bed, Hawkes checked to see if he wanted in, given it was getting cold. But there was no sign of Bailey.

She woke at 1:30 a. m. to look again and saw no paw prints in the snow.

Later that morning, when she got up for work at a Welland medical clinic, there was still no indication the big cat had been by.

Hawkes called and called his name. But Bailey, who usually responded, still didn't turn up.

As she get ready for work, she heard a disturbing sound and came rushing downstairs where she found Bailey in a window well.

"I could hear this godawful scream. It was like a baby crying," Hawkes said.

Given how skittish Bailey was with other people, Devon said he can't help but think someone had to chase and trap Bailey.

On Tuesday afternoon, he could still smell gas outside in the parking lot, making him think it happened close to home.

"I have friends who are angry about this. They're saying, 'Who could do this?' " Devon said. "That cat's been through thick and thin with us. You would have to bear-hug him to hold him. He wouldn't hurt a fly. He was so gentle."

As she wiped her tears, Hawkes said they've lost a member of the family.

"To know that there's someone out there so twisted to do that to an animal. To have him go through that, I can't fathom," she said.

"That's the hardest thing, that he suffered like that."


This happened just a few towns over from where I'm currently living, and only a 20 minute drive from where I grew up.

As someone who owns a rescue animal - a cat that was abused(his poor tail was snapped right in half) and left to starve in the bitter Ottawa winter - I can't even think of what kind of mental disorder someone would have to have to hurt an animal. But I do know that animal abuse and killings have been linked to other far more severe psychosis. Infamous serial killers such as Dennis Radar, the BTK, have confessed that they started out with ritualistic animal abuse and killing in their neighbourhoods as children. I'm so sad for this animal, but I can't help but be afraid for the person(s) next victim - this type of crime is rarely an isolated incident.

Poor, Poor Bailey.

36 comments:

  1. Abusing animals is low and despicable. I hope the perpetrator(s) get caught and justice is served. My heart goes out to the family.

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  2. That is sick. I couldn't imagine that happening to either one of my cats.

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  3. An animal can't even comprehend what you're doing to it.

    Our vet told us that because of our cats temperament, he likely went back to his abuser over and over again.

    We've had him for over a year(and he's now quite healthy) but he'll still flinch away from sudden movements and he can't be picked up.

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  4. That's sickening beyond description. I definitely agree that whoever did this is obviously showing signs of a serial killer. If he/she isn't caught they could easily do this to another animal or person.

    Maragon said..
    "Our vet told us that because of our cats temperament, he likely went back to his abuser over and over again."

    I don't know anything about the psychology of cats, but I know some abused people do the same thing. Maybe their are some psychological explanations for it.

    Best of luck to you and your cat, Maragon. My heart goes out to you guys <3 <3

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  5. I am going to resist saying anything even vaguely theological here and just say that I can not even fathom how even the thought could cross someone's mind to do something like this.

    Even thought I lost my interest in psychology as a general subject, from a behavioral standpoint I do wonder what in the hell is going on in the brain of someone who does this sort of thing.

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  6. Maragon said...

    An animal can't even comprehend what you're doing to it.


    I disagree, i think they know full well what you're doing to them, which makes this even more of a travesty.

    To imagine what that cat must have felt to have a creature 20 times its size brutalize it over and over again, and set fire to it for no reason must have been extremely horrifying and painful.

    I hope people find out who did it, and he (i'm assuming it's a guy) gets his balls put in a vice.

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  7. Almost makes you re-think our previous comments on eternal punishment being inappropriate...


    We're looking to take in a rescue dog next year and going through the cells at the humane society is a pretty harrowing experience - you want to take them all! I don't know how the staff manage to keep it together working there; I tip my hat them.

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  8. I rescued two cats from the shelter a few years ago. They grew up feral and took a while warming up to me. They're still pretty skittish.

    The brother of the pair is sitting next to me as I read this. I've just given him a blanket to snuggle with...

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  9. "I disagree, i think they know full well what you're doing to them, which makes this even more of a travesty."

    To be more clear, I guess I should have said comprehend why something is being done to them.
    On the same token, most vets will tell you that it is useless to punish cats for 'bad behaviours' because they don't associate punishment with what they've done(in example, peeing out of their litter box).

    The only solace I can find is that the poor animal died in the arms of it's family - it fought so hard to crawl back to them.

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  10. We've had him for over a year(and he's now quite healthy) but he'll still flinch away from sudden movements and he can't be picked up.

    It can take a while to build a relationship with a cat. Their trust is difficult to gain, and easy to lose.

    Just be affectionate, and your cat will get closer and closer. I would suggest wrestling with it to bond more (but either trim its claws first or wear a glove), but see if it's still defensive of it's belly.

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  11. Ok, I can't take it anymore. This made me bawl my eyes out and here's the theological thing I was going to say:

    The person(s) who did this, if they were Christian and according to Christianity, could just ask to be forgiven by their deity and march right into heaven, while the person who was merely angry with someone but never asked for forgiveness and wasn't Christian would burn for all eternity. Oh, yeah, makes perfect sense.

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  12. You know what else makes me sad?
    All over the Facebook group they have people saying that whomever did this to Bailey should be tortured and set on fire - and some people saying that they would gladly do it.

    Although I'm very upset about what happened to this poor little mammal, I wouldn't do anything to the person(s) who hurt him, other than turn them into the proper authorities.

    Don't these people understand that it's the fact that we WOULDN'T maim and torture animals or people that set us apart from psychopaths like this one? If we were to murder or condone murder, what makes us any better?

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  13. NM,

    There's that, and also picking up on the whole 'absolute morals' thing that's being tossed around these days:

    I was half-expecting someone to come in here and ask us if this act was absolutely morally wrong and why.

    To which, my reply would be to say that, in the bible, man is given dominion over all animals and so, according to the Christian worldview, this actually isn't an immoral act. Can anyone confirm this stance, because I'm not 100% on it.


    I'd also re-iterate the concerns that this individual could follow the path of so many who started out torturing animals; it is a path too often tread.

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  14. Animal abusers are the lowest form of humanity, just below religious fundamentalists and paparazzi. My heart hurts for poor Bailey.

    I never let my cat outside unsupervised - outdoor cats face all sorts of dangers, not just sadistic humans. They can be hit by cars, attacked by dogs or other animals, etc. My very first cat was an outdoors cat and, at age 17, she was run over by my own father in the car. (She had gone deaf and couldn't hear him starting the engine.) I learned the hard way that it's best to keep your little furballs inside. The world is just too dangerous and full of sickos.

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  15. Hurting an animal. I'm not a cat person (comes from living in a place with so many beautiful native birds: it's heart-wrenching to find them afterwards), and have nothing against giving ferals a humane death, but that person is pathetic, sick, evil, and every other word with powerful negative connotations I can think of.

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  16. Maragon,

    Agreed wholeheartedly. Answering violence with violence puts us on the same footing with the people that did this.


    Matt, that's a very good point about the man having dominion over animals. I wonder how a fundy would answer that question vs. a moderate xian.

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  17. I've got a quick question for y'all:

    Have you ever noticed that people react very emotionally when cute things (like cats, dogs, etc) are maliciously harmed? Have you also noticed that the reaction is less emotional when the victim is human?

    If it looks like I'm making an accusation, I consider myself guilty as well. Maragon's story really made me angry - whereas in most cases, I feel "sadness" when humans are hurt.

    I haven't quite figured out why this happens. I think it's more than just "preying on the vulnerable", but I'm not quite willing to guess at what that might be...

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  18. WEM,

    Personally, for me it's both, especially when I hear about a child, the disabled or the elderly getting hurt. It's the defenseless that get me.

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  19. This story literally made me cry. I'll never understand how someone could do this to an innocent animal, shit even a mean animal. I love animals more than I do most people. I don't even know what to say. That's so terrible. I feel so bad for the family.

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  20. This really hit home. My cat's name is Bailey.

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  21. What sound does a cat make when you douse it in gasoline and set it on fire?
    Woof.

    What sound does a dog make when you pass it through a cicular-saw.
    Meow.


    (Too soon?)

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  22. I read only the introduction text, couldn't take the whole report. Had to hug my cat right away. No, she's staying inside.
    My first thought about people who do such things is 'torture them to death'. No matter if the victims are humans or other animals. But my sense of justice is stronger. Is there consolation in making believe that if the person isn't caught, there will be postmortem judgment? No, yells my intelligence. Insulting your own mind is no redemption for a harsh reality. Substituting a fairy tale makes it worse, not better.

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  23. [I was half-expecting someone to come in here and ask us if this act was absolutely morally wrong and why.]
    It is rather sad to see people suppressing their moral intuition that some things are objectively wrong, just they can conform to their worldview

    [ man is given dominion over all animals and so, according to the Christian worldview, this actually isn't an immoral act.]
    The Torah does have some prohibitions on animal cruelty
    And given dominion does not mean tthat you can do whatever you want to it.

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  24. Mr Freethinker,

    All the quotes from the torah I saw basically just said don't eat your animals alive or "protect the garden". I didn't see any statements specifically against the act of animal abuse as a whole, other than in the commentary of others.

    And of course animal abuse is wrong, you don't need the Bible to tell you. I would highly doubt anyone thought it was moral to abuse an animal, like in the story of Bailey, until they read the bible.

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  25. "It is rather sad to see people suppressing their moral intuition that some things are objectively wrong, just they can conform to their worldview"

    I think it's rather sad that you feel a need to claim that an absolute standard had to TELL you that setting cats on fire is wrong.

    Are you so sick and depraved that you couldn't figure that out all on your own?

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  26. [I would highly doubt anyone thought it was moral to abuse an animal, like in the story of Bailey, until they read the bible.]
    I wasn't claiming that.People can recognise objective moral standards on their own. The passage was about removing body parts from animals while they were still alive.It's the principle behind it too.

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  27. [I think it's rather sad that you feel a need to claim that an absolute standard had to TELL you that setting cats on fire is wrong.]
    We've been through this. I would need an objective standard to tell HIM it is wrong. If you just said it was subjectively wrong,Who cares? That's just your opinion. But if people recognise that there is an objective moral standard that they will be held accountable for, then it is something different.

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  28. So people are only moral because they are scared of what may hold them accountable (I'm assuming that's god)??

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  29. "We've been through this. I would need an objective standard to tell HIM it is wrong. If you just said it was subjectively wrong,Who cares? That's just your opinion. But if people recognise that there is an objective moral standard that they will be held accountable for, then it is something different."

    So, you're only good for fear of punishment?

    And a subjective standard can offer evidence as to why something is bad - objective says "NO IT IS BECAUSE MY PRETEND FRIEND IN THE SKY TOLD ME IT IS."

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  30. [So people are only moral because they are scared of what may hold them accountable (I'm assuming that's god)??]
    Not only because. For example, have you ever run a red light. I don't because it is against the law and I want to be a good citizen. However I would be lying if I said that there were no people who would run the lights if there were no policemen around to enforce the law and hold them accountable or that did not play a part in my judgement.

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  31. So the bible is for people who don't feel being a good person is enough of a reason to be moral? They need another "policeman", like god, to keep them in check??

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  32. "Not only because. For example, have you ever run a red light. I don't because it is against the law and I want to be a good citizen. However I would be lying if I said that there were no people who would run the lights if there were no policemen around to enforce the law and hold them accountable or that did not play a part in my judgement."

    This isn't an appropriate example. Something can be against the law but not immoral.

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  33. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  34. MFT babbled Something can be against the law but not immoral

    Just as something can be immoral but not against the law.

    Like, say, intellectual dishonesty...

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  35. There are useful laws, and then there are stupid laws.

    There is an actual law in the city just north of where I live that specifically states that no motorized vehicles can be operated in the local parks. According to this law, my friend can not use his motorized wheelchair.

    Stupid law? You bet. There are hundreds of them.

    I prefer to use my intelligence to determine my actions.

    If I am driving at 5:00 am and come to a red light, I treat it as a 4-way stop. If there are no other cars in sight, I will cautiously proceed.

    Illegal? Technically.
    Unsafe? No. And I doubt if any cop would give me a ticket for it unless he had a fight with his wife and just wanted to nail anyone he could.

    I have forgotten the Latin legal term for it, but there are two types of laws - Laws with reason, and laws just existing as laws, or something like that.

    In West Virginia state code deems it unlawful for any person to have in his possession or to display any red or black flag. Source: West Virginia Code 61-1-6

    Stupid laws.

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  36. Whatever argument one can make about legality or morality or Christianity, or Heaven or Hell, I think we can all agree, if the perpetrator of this cowardly vile act is ever caught, nothing will happen to him/her. There are no laws in this country to protect Bailey's rights. We saw this with Lady and Tramp last year. Their abusers got 3 years probation, and a pet ban. We have seen this for years. Dogs dragged on the ground behind vehicles, dogs with their ears cut off, all manner of abuse and neglect, and the abusers get shown the courtroom door. "Thank-you, come again." We need to act. We need to make our governments act. Please visit the link below, and make your voice, or your keyboard, really speak volumes.
    http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/624279181

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