Comment

Comment by Zigward & Kimberly on September 24, 2012 at 11:28pm

:( How awful.

There is a kid somewhere around my grandparent's neighborhood that shoots the cats with a BB gun :/ Got my childhood kitty in the leg one time. He's lucky I didn't know who or where he was. I would have gotten him back.

Did your regular vet agree with the emergency vet?

Comment by Diane on May 3, 2012 at 10:32am

He was originally picked up by animal control in a fairly rural area up in Northern Calif, so I guess that would explain it...   I don't know how long he had been running loose but he was definitely underweight and had worms.   The rescue's conjecture was that maybe a backyard breeder had him (he wasn't tagged, chipped or fixed) and didn't want to call attention to it so didn't claim him.  Plausible - given that he was clearly crate trained but not entirely potty trained...  So who knows.  Either way it was definitely to our gain, he's turned into a great dog and we love him to death.   He's also tagged, chipped, and fixed ;-> 

It doesn't seem to be causing him any pain, or certainly we've never noticed any sign of it. The emergency vet didn't seem to think it would be necessary to remove, but we have a follow up with his regular vet today to check the leg out so I'll ask him as well. 

I can't believe someone would use shooting their dog as a training technique (!) 

Comment by Chris, Kadi & Brodie on May 3, 2012 at 8:29am

Definitely a pellet. I've actually seen a lot of xrays with both pellets and BBs in them, but usually they are in the rump from where the dog was running away and got shot. One of our beagles that came up as a stray (when I was growing up) had a lot of BB in her hindquarters, but it never caused her trouble. Then later, the dog that my folks inherited when Grandpa died was full of BB shot too. He ran in the country previously without restraint. It's pretty common, unfortunately. What is even sadder to see are the bird dogs that come in full of bird shot FROM THEIR OWNERS who use it as a form of training! This is why when Brodie showed up at our place I was so quick to confine him and keep him here--I knew if he kept wandering he would be shot.

Comment by Bev Levy on May 3, 2012 at 7:25am

I try not to focus on how cruel some can be. Poor Chewey, but look how happy he is now!

Comment by Julia on May 3, 2012 at 2:01am

I'm sorry to say we do see this occasionally in our shelter dogs and cats. Probably not as often as a more rural area would. I became very fond of a shy and unhappy cat who had a pellet in her side, as well as bad mats, gunky eyes, and dirty ears. After we fixed her up she was like a different cat. Clearly these things were making her miserable. So I wonder if that pellet is causing your baby any pain? Did the vet have an opinion on that? Did he discuss removing it? I also wonder if there is ever a danger of lead poisoning in these cases.

Don't mean to scare you, but these are the things that have always concerned me when one of our animals has been shot. I don't actually know if these are really issues that you need to worry about.

And, no, I really can't understand the appeal of shooting a cat or a dog. An ex-husband, maybe. ;)

Comment by Lawren and Teddy on May 2, 2012 at 11:47pm

It's a pellet. My cat, ages and ages ago when I was a kid, got shot with a BB gun and almost died. Some neighbor kid shot him as he sat in the window. It took all my self control not to go after that little snot head, as I would have done some damage to him myself. I didn't understand it then and still don't.

Comment by John Wolff on May 2, 2012 at 11:42pm

That's a pellet, not a BB.  Doesn't look like it's doing any damage.

My guess is:  juvenile male kid with pellet gun, or possibly a neighbor crazed by incessant barking.  Either condition can result in lack of empathy. 

The scary thing is the realization of how many people, old enough to be adults, have no more maturity or empathy than a 13 year-old.

Comment by Jane Christensen on May 2, 2012 at 11:39pm

I won't even guess but what a horrible thing someone did to him:( Glad he's got a good home now!