It’s truly unbelievable how cruel some people can be to animals. Too many pets have been found in heartbreaking condition. Thankfully, there are also kind people in the world willing to step up to help and treat these poor creatures.
Like one cat, who is now recovering after being badly wounded by what appears to be a gunshot to the face.
The Oshkosh Area Humane Society, in Wisconsin, reports that a cat was found in the rural area of Winnebago County by a good samaritan, who noticed the cat’s mouth was badly injured.
The cat was brought to OAHS, who rushed him to a pet hospital. The cat had sustained a critical injury to the jaw, likely caused by a gunshot to the face.
“The cat’s lower jaw was essentially gone… X-rays showed buckshot lodged throughout his body,” OAHS wrote on Facebook. “He had clearly been a victim of cruelty more than once.”
The Humane Society took care of the cat, determined to give him a second chance at a better life after such terrible abuse. They named the cat “Richie Cunningham” (the name of Ron Howard’s redheaded Happy Days character) due to his reddish fur.
Richie underwent surgeries, which went a long way in healing his gruesome attack wounds.
“Richie had surgery to remove the remaining bone fragments, dead tissue and skin,” OAHS writes. “Miraculously, he is able to drink and eat on his own.”
And despite everything, the cat’s playful personality has already started to shine through: “Despite the trauma he had endured the cat was friendly and enjoyed gentle pets and even tried to head butt hands to solicit more attention.”
OAHS reports that law enforcement has begun an investigation into the case, and will hopefully bring some justice for this poor cat.
“Richie is such a nice cat and we can’t imagine why anyone would have caused him such pain,” the humane society wrote. “It takes all of us working together to put a stop to animal cruelty. Please be their voice.”
In the meantime, though, things are looking up for Richie: he’s now in a foster home, and once he’s fully rested and recovered he will be put up for adoption.
Hopefully, he will soon find a loving home — and will never have to worry about enduring cruel abuse ever again.
It’s unbelievable that anyone could shoot a beautiful cat like this, but we’re glad that Richie is in safe hands now — hopefully the culprit will be brought to justice soon.
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