Family cat suffers serious injuries after being shot with pellet gun in Simcoe

After several traumatic days, the Crook family in Simcoe had reason to be grateful on Monday, Oct. 9.

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It was Thanksgiving Day and their family cat, Cutie, was coming home.

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One week earlier, Cutie got out when the front door was inadvertently left open – basically the first time the four-year-old cat was outside.

They found their cat in the evening of Oct. 4, hiding under a bush in Percy Carter Park adjacent to their property.

“I had actually kind of given up that evening,” said Natasha Crook. “I took my dogs out for separate walks and we had walked the block. We cut through the back field that goes behind our house for one last little search, then Nugget, my golden retriever, he started to pull me toward a bush. I grabbed my flashlight and I saw her (Cutie’s) green eye shine back at me.”

Crook picked up Cutie, taking her home.

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“We thought maybe she had got into a fight with a cat. That’s when we noticed something sticking out of her back. It looked like a nail or something like a screw.”

Immediately Crook and her husband wondered if Cutie had been tortured.

The Crooks rushed Cutie to the Brant Norfolk Veterinary Clinic, which provides emergency after-hour care in Brantford.

“We found her at 9 pm – everything else was closed.”

After X-rays, the vets told them Cutie had been shot with a pellet gun. Seven pellets were embedded in the body, one through an eye. Some pellets had cleanly entered from the right side and exited Cutie’s body. The vets believe the shooting took place on Oct. 2, Crook said.

“That was not something that had crossed our minds as a potential… I’m afraid of coyotes and dogs and all sorts of other things, and then finding out someone like that is living in our neighborhood like that, it brings a whole different level of fear.”

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On Tuesday, Norfolk OPP issued a media release saying police are continuing to investigate and are seeking public assistance.

“We are certainly investigating,” said Constable Andrew Gamble in an email.

If anyone has any information, they are asked to contact police at 1-888-310-1122. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or leave an anonymous online tip at www.helpsolvecrime.com where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.

Crook said she had an opportunity to knock on a few neighbors’ doors asking if they could review their surveillance videos. She will continue that effort.

“Some houses that face the park do have cameras, I’m just not sure if they reach that far. We’re hoping that someone’s camera even picked up someone just walking into the park or out of the park with a pellet gun.

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“I am hoping that we reaching out again and again will get someone to come forward.”

Crook admitted to a feeling of guilt – recalling the open door.

“It was me,” she said. “The reason we saved her was because I’m the one who left the door open. I was dropping the kids off at school, I had asked them to close the door, and I didn’t double check it. It was my fault, and I’m dealing with that. Not all it was my fault, but it was my fault. I had to give her my all… to fight for her.”

Each morning and evening Cutie had been transferred back and forth between the Brant Norfolk clinic, only open at night, where the initial X-rays were completed, and their regular vet, Shellard Lane Animal Hospital in Brantford, only open during the day, where surgery was done Oct. 5.

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Three pellets remain embedded in Cutie’s body – beyond Shellard’s level of surgery.

“On Saturday (Oct. 7) I transferred her to Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph… to get another opinion from specialists to determine if surgery was they route we should go.”

It was decided the remaining three pellets were not causing Cutie, which was stable and recovering, any issues at this time.

“Hopefully they don’t cause any issues down the line. If they do, we’ll have to look at surgery then.”

FUNDRAISING

Natasha, who has a family of five, two dogs and two cats, is raising funds on gofundme to assist with veterinary bills – the page is ‘Cutie whose been shot.’ So far, $4,295 of their $6,000 goal has been raised through donations from the community.

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“It’s been a very big help,” said Crook, estimating vet bills will be about $8,000, and more with follow-up visits.

“It’s been amazing. I have helped with a couple of rescues, I have donated to rescues when we can. Now I’ve been on the receiving end and I could not have saved her (Cutie) had everyone not helped. I would have had to quit at some point because my credit cards were tapped out. We had taken out a loan, we had exhausted everything we possibly could.”

Crook said there are a lot of outdoor cats in their area.

“There’s two missing in our area – one has a poster that has been up for a couple of weeks now. We’ve looked because I would hate for them to find their cat suffering the same fate. It’s a thought that hasn’t left my mind, that might be what happened to their cat.”

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