Cat Shot with Crossbow in Deliberate Attack Now Making Miraculous Recovery
Shelters and rescues that take in stray and unwanted cats have a distinct influx of critters around springtime. Sometimes called “kitten season,” the spring affects cats the same way it does all the other creatures, and the numbers can multiply to a staggering degree.
While rescues buckle up and get foster homes ready in anticipation of the feline wave poised to crash every year, what they don’t expect is cases like Robin Hood’s.
Robin Hood was found in Glenfield, Leicestershire, England, and is a black cat, which already sets him at a disadvantage. People aren’t as interested in adopting all-black animals, whether dogs or cats, but there’s a lot of superstition surrounding black cats in particular.
Perhaps that’s why Robin Hood was the target of an unkind soul armed with a crossbow, or perhaps there’s another reason someone took a shot at him, but by the time the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals got ahold of him on April 28, it was a miracle he was even alive.
Inspector Karl Marston with the RSPCA confirmed how close a brush with death the black cat had experienced, according to ITV.
“This cat had a very lucky escape — it’s a miracle that no serious damage was done,” Marston said. “He’d clearly been shot at deliberately with a crossbow and the bolt was lodged in his shoulder and protruding out past his cheek.
“He needed surgery to remove the large arrow and continued treatment to nurse him back to health but he’s now doing really well.”
The photo is sickening and shows how serious the injury was. If the arrow had been just a bit to the left or right, Robin Hood could have been killed on impact or suffered a cruel and unusual death.
“It’s sickening that anyone would want to injure or kill a cat,” Karl Marston said, according to the BBC.
Thankfully, the cat was rescued and moved to RSPCA Northamptonshire Branch, where he awaits his new family.
“Robin, five, is recovering well and looking for a permanent home — although the RSPCA says he will need a patient owner as he is a little bit shy,” BBC East Midlands wrote on Facebook on June 5.
“Robin Hood was recently transferred into our care from another RSPCA branch,” RSPCA Northamptonshire Branch wrote on Facebook. “He originally came into rescue care suffering from a crossbow injury!
“Thankfully Robin’s injuries have now healed and he is looking for a new home. Robin will need to be the only cat and kept indoors as he has tested positive for FIV.”
While he’ll need some time to adjust to a new family, it’s only understandable, given his past. Who wouldn’t be a little withdrawn after such an attack?
“We hope he’ll find a lovely new home where he’ll be safe and loved,” Marston said.
No word on any suspects yet, but Marston is on the lookout, according to the Independent.
“Anyone with any information about what happened to Robin should contact our appeal line on 0300 123 8018 and leave me a message,” he said.
“I’d also like to remind members of the public that it is illegal under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to cause unnecessary suffering to any animal and anyone prosecuted under this act could face an unlimited fine and/or up to six months in prison.”
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