Sherry Silk, the executive director of the Tampa Humane Society has said “we are prepared to fight to keep the cat.” The cat is Bart aka Zombie Cat. The cat that came back from the dead. You may remember he was presumed dead by his owner, Hutson, after being hit by a car. Hutson asked a neighbour to bury his cat and he did. Bart eventually clawed his way out of his grave and turned up in a very bad way. Hutson took him to the Tampa Humane Society for treatment. They won’t hand him back. Hutson has not handed over ownership. There is a potential dispute over ownership brewing.
The reason why the Humane Society won’t release Bart back to his owner is because they are not completely sure he was hit by a car despite genuinely agreeing that Bart’s injuries are consistent with a car accident. Court documents have come to light which tell us that Hutson was arrested in 1998 and charged with animal cruelty. The charges were eventually thrown out but it has created doubts about the veracity of Hutson’s story.
This may be unfair but I suppose the Humane Society have to play safe in the interests of Bart’s welfare especially as he is a vulnerable cat with his injuries including the loss of his left eye and broken jaw. However, when Bart was found he was a decent weight. He was also friendly. Both indicate being treated correctly.
Vets believe that Bart was buried for quite a while. He turned up about five days after being buried alive. Can we presume he was buried for five days? Probably. The indicators are that he was actually buried because he was covered in dirt and maggots in his wounds. Anyway the neighbour who buried him can give evidence on this and perhaps shed some light on the matter generally.
The whole thing is a bit distressing. It is strange and sad that there is a custody battle going on. I wonder if there is another reason for not releasing him. I don’t want to sound too cynical (which I have become over the years) but Bart is now a genuine cat celebrity and cat celebrities are good for their owner in very many ways.
Source (thanks): WFMZ.com
I tried posting a comment but pressed wrong key after having trouble typing on laptop, so not sure if it worked or not and its not showing up here, so if its being reviewed, pls delete. Basically the owner and one particular associate seem to have worrying motives re Bart, with a Go Fund Me account which was set up by them supposedly for his care and treatment but not a cent was passed on to the Humane Society, and it appears to be a complete scam to which many people donated in all innocence. I hope Bart is not returned to owner or any associates as it looks like they may have harmed him for media attention and money. I hope he is adopted to a lovely home.
Thanks Pippa for that information. I had no idea. It’s good info. and it makes me believe the Human Society is correct in what they are doing.
A clearer scenario is that the cat was hit by a car or beaten by the owners; and rather than be found guilty of animal-neglect, animal-endangerment, or animal-abuse from just letting the cat lay lifeless for days somewhere as flies landed on it; they invented the “buried” story to cover their own asses. Like any cat-owners would if they found themselves in a similar situation from a car hitting their cat and being found guilty of the very same laws.
Your proposed scenario sounds quite possible. It is an interesting story I believe. There is certainly some suspicion surrounding Hutson’s motives and behavior.
If the cat was truly buried, there would have been no maggots in its wounds. Maggots are fly larvae. Flies could not have landed on its wounds if buried deeply enough to cover the cat with even one inch of soil.
Nice point Trey.
From the little I’ve read, I’m prepared to give Tampa Humane Society the benefit of the doubt on this occasion.
I believe they do have the best interests of this cat at heart. (They could have suggested euthanasia to the owner, instead of funding expensive surgery themselves.) Perhaps their concerns are not so much about abuse from the owner, but the safety of the local environment if the owner cannot keep the cat strictly indoors? Or maybe there’s background info we’re simply not privvy too yet?
I hope Bart makes a good recovery and has quality of life wherever he calls home in the future.