Alley Cat Allies Offers $7,500 Reward In Animal Cruelty Investigation Over Cat Killed With An Arrow
Alley Cat Allies, an organization dedicated to the promotion of Trap-Neuter-Return programs for controlling feral cat populations, is offering a $7,500 reward for any evidence that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or people who are responsible for killing a cat in Austin County, Texas. The reward was offered after news broke of a Facebook post of an alleged screen grab of a woman, alleged to be Texas veterinarian Kristen Lindsey, holding an orange and white cat up in the air by an arrow that was sticking out of the back of the cat’s head.
Alley Cat Allies has disassociated itself with naming names and has made it abundantly clear on its Facebook page that the organization considers all potential perpetrators in the case innocent until proven guilty.
Alley Cat Allies offers $7,500 reward in Austin County, #TX animal cruelty investigation: http://t.co/Jp0rOp676Q
— Alley Cat Allies (@alleycatallies) April 17, 2015
The Inquisitr broke the news Friday that police were investigating an alleged case of animal cruelty after the Brenham Police Department announced on Facebook that it would be looking into the matter. After a swift investigation, the Brenham PD concluded that the alleged crime that Alley Cat Allies is offering the reward over took place outside of their jurisdiction. The case was then taken up by the Austin County Sheriff. The Austin County Sheriff also took quick action and reported that a deputy and a lieutenant were sent to the scene. The full story with updates can be found in the previous Inquisitr article.
Alley Cat Allies became interested in the case because the image that had become viral on Facebook depicted a woman allegedly bragging about shooting a feral tomcat with an arrow. Alley Cat Allies made it clear that in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, killing a cat without the owner’s permission is illegal. Alley Cat Allies elaborated that the activity is illegal regardless of if the cat is a stray, a pet, or a feral cat.
Anti-Cruelty laws protect all cats—pet, stray, and feral: http://t.co/h8SnrDvgUe
— Alley Cat Allies (@alleycatallies) April 17, 2015
“Intentionally killing a cat — pet, stray or feral — is against the law in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. This gruesome incident is cause for alarm for the community’s safety. Psychiatric and criminological research has established a clear link between cruelty to animals and a host of other violent behaviors toward people.”
“Animal cruelty must be taken seriously, and the guilty parties should be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Becky Robinson, president and founder of Alley Cat Allies, said in a press release.
Complicating the story of the veterinarian’s alleged crime even further, the orange and white cat allegedly had identical markings to a reportedly neutered male cat in the same neighborhood which allegedly went missing the day before the Facebook post began circulating on social media, as the earlier Inqusitr article explained.
Had a fantastic time this week visiting @AlleyCatAllies‘ Atlantic City Boardwalk Cats! pic.twitter.com/EwYfPk5usS
— Becky Robinson (@feralbecky) April 17, 2015
Two decades ago, Alley Cat Allies spearheaded the mainstreaming of Trap-Neuter-Return programs in the United States and is now recognized world-wide. The Inquisitr reported on these programs, called “TNR programs,” in a previous report.
“In a TNR program, feral cats are trapped, neutered or spayed, vaccinated, sometimes de-wormed, often ear-tipped and then returned to where they were first trapped. The practice, according to The Atlantic City Lab, is endorsed by the Humane Society of the United States as well as the ASPCA.”
Through “grassroots organizing, hands-on activism, and education” by Alley Cat Allies, activists, policymakers, veterinarians, and colony caregivers were given tools, scientific research, and lessons in how to properly utilize TNR programs to reduce feral cat colonies. Deemed a nuisance by many, a new accidental finding from researchers suggests that culling feral cat colonies through various forms of euthanasia appears to actually increase the colonies’ numbers, compounding the problem, according to an ABC News report from earlier this month.
Alley Cat Allies is a non-profit organization that spends 87 percent of its funds on educational and outreach programs and only 7 percent on administration.
[Photo via Alley Cat Allies/Facebook]
