2 cats, Bast and Buttons, are recovering after getting shot in a Gloucester County town
The West Deptford Police Department is investigating what happened to the cats.
West Deptford police are investigating after two cats were treated for gunshot wounds within the same week at a local veterinary clinic.
Margie Green is used to the hijinks of her six cats that sometimes, despite their tracking collars and fenced-in yard, escape into her West Deptford neighborhood.
But when Bast, a 3-year-old American shorthair, returned to the door earlier than usual on Wednesday night, Green, 41, knew something wasn’t quite right.
Bast had been shot.
Staff at EPIC Veterinary Urgent Care in Cherry Hill discovered that Bast, adopted from Gloucester County Animal Shelter, had metal embedded in his bone. Veterinarians later decided it would be best to amputate a front leg.
Green, a certified veterinary technician, has been extra cautious since the shooting. She said she is now keeping her cats inside for the time being.
“I specialize in behavior. It’s really important for animals to be able to engage in breed specific behaviors, and for cats, that doesn’t always happen,” Green said. “Outdoor access has its risks. I did not imagine one of those risks would be human.”
Then, on Friday, EPIC Vet treated another cat, Buttons, who had a gunshot wound to the eye. Veterinarians reported the two cases to the West Deptford Police Department.
“It’s not unheard of to see a cat with a gunshot wound, but two close together like that, from the same area, is so weird,” said Emily Volk, a veterinarian at the urgent care clinic.
Bast and Buttons are now recovering in their separate homes, Bast with one leg and Buttons with one eye.
West Deptford police are trying to figure out what happened to them. One injury happened near Ford and May Avenues, and the other near Crown Point Road and Church Street, police said.
“The injuries for each cat are consistent with a small caliber firearm or pellet gun,” the police department said in a statement.
John Craig, West Deptford’s police chief, said Monday the case has been assigned to a detective with animal cruelty investigation training.
Volk said cats are always safest indoors. If an owner can’t keep them indoors at all times, cats should wear a collar and neighbors should be informed that the cat is a pet.
Bast is still enjoying life despite the amputation, Green said. As the investigation continues, she said she hopes whoever shot Bast grows to understand why what they did was wrong.
“I don’t have a strong desire for them to be caught or punished as much as I really hope this person experiences a relationship or a circumstance in which they understand the impact of their actions and helps them to change,” she said. “I hope they love an animal and understand what this feels.”
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