TACOMA, Wash. — Kittens Echo and Foxtrot were brought to the Tacoma Humane Society’s animal shelter on Dec. 7 after both were found maimed, each one with a missing back-left paw and a missing part of a tail.
The Humane Society said that both kittens, each weighing less than a pound, were in desperate need of leg amputations due to the pain they were in and potential infection.
In January, the Humane Society asked for donations to help pay for the expensive surgeries after the shelter had become “inundated” with critical medical cases over the previous year.
On Wednesday, the shelter announced that the community had delivered with its generosity, and Echo and Foxtrot are now healthy in their forever home.
“The shelter’s veterinarians did an amazing job. After their amputations, they could walk, run, and jump with ease. They no longer winced from pain,” said their foster parent Amy Coy, who helped the kittens recover after surgery with “love and cuddles.”
Echo and Foxtrot were adopted by the animal control officer who brought them to the shelter in December. The officer said the two are settling in well following the adoption.
Coy said it was “love at first sight” for the kittens and the officer, adding, “They will now live forever pain-free in a loving home. They deserve nothing less.”
The Tacoma Humane Society is expecting to see hundreds of more kittens come into its doors beginning in March. The shelter is hosting its third annual Virtual Kitten Shower to prepare for the uptick in kittens.
Kittens found with maimed paws in Pierce County
Those looking to participate can donate funds and supplies to care for the kittens through the shelter’s Amazon Wishlist Kitten Registry.
Also in December, Pierce County Animal Control found more than a dozen dogs that were neglected and left in frigid temperatures on a property in Graham. Several dogs were dead and another had to be euthanized.
Later that same month, another 14 dogs were brought to the Humane Society's shelter after being found neglected on a property in Tacoma.
Over the last two years, there has been an increase in animal cruelty cases around the Puget Sound region.
The Seattle Animal shelter said severe animal cruelty cases doubled in 2020 compared to 2019.
In King County, animal cruelty cases have risen since the start of the pandemic, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office. In 2021, they filed 21 cases. In 2020, there were 25 cases filed with just nine cases in 2019 and 10 cases in 2018.