thinksnow and Arjuna34, I really appreciate your forethought. I’ll get right on this.
::car driving to store::
PS: Thank you for your praise Yue Han. All of you are far too kind. I can only hope that this is one of the few things worth living for, and that is praise from the praiseworthy.
I am absolutely sick to my stomach. This was clearly not a crime of opportunity, but something they’d PLANNED, as evidenced by the fact that they had another cat ready to torture. I haven’t received an email yet, but I’m changing the thread title. Gah.
I’ve had a dog deliberately and maliciously poisoned, and a cat. My kitties are inside only, and my dogs stay in the fenced back yard.
Zenster - you done good.
According to Douglas Fairbanks, one of the common elements of serial killers was cruelty to animals. I think the other two were pyromania and bedwetting at an older age.
Sick guys.
Fuck, man, fuck. How could you do anything like this? I admit that I’ve done some stupid things in my day, but I’ve never tortured an animal! These guys should be “put down” the same as you’d do for a rabid dog. That sounds extreme, I know, but if they’d do that to an animal, they’d probably do the same or worse to a human.
Zenster, I gotta say you’re my personal hero for the day. You did the right thing, and I hope that everyone in court throws up at the sight of those photos.
Thank you Lynn. I had to run down to the store and insert explanatory notes into the film pouches so I don’t get a visit from the SWAT team (thanks thinksnow and Arjuna34).
I am revolted to hear that you have lost pets in such a horrid fashion, Lynn. My heart goes out to you. Thanks for jumping on this. And, yes, these sick fucks were in a serial mode of pet murdering. I can only hope they’re stupid enough to brag about it when they get to prison.
China Guy, we may not always agree, but I’m really glad to know that we agree on this. I may be going back to Taiwan for another week in a few days. I hope this will presage another extended visit in the long term. I sure would like to visit Shanghai and hoist a brew with you.
Tuckerfan, your kind words along with those of the others have made all of what I had to see a lot easier to endure. It will be a while before I get a good night’s sleep again. If I can get the jury to vomit in unison, then I’ll know that I did my job right.
You’re a good man. You did what was right.
oh holy jesus… if i had seen this, i don’t think i could’ve kept myself from taking a knife or some other sharp implement to them…
“that is what is known as complete utter filth and waste to society, johnny. do you want the razor or the icepick?”
{{{{{{{{{lynn}}}}}}}}}}}
{{{{{{{{{Zenster}}}}}}}}}}
jeeesus.
i’m gonna go vomit now.
Wonderful. It’s a national trend. Yay :rolleyes: We had a similar case in Colorado. Two (fucking asshole) punks lit a cat on fire and flung him into traffic.
A vet has been taking care of the cat (I’ve been to the clinic with my pets…nice people!) and Westy is recovering. If you want to see something not gross, check out how well Westy’s doing now here (don’t look at the earlier photos at the bottom of the page, though).
And, good job, Zenster. You’re doing the right thing.
Fenris
Call me crazy, but leaving something out for the specific purpose of causing animals to internally bleed to death seems like animal cruelty to me. Best wishes for your dog, and I hope after seeing what he has gone through, you’ll find a better way to keep the rats out of your house.
Sadly, that’s exactly what it is! As I’ve noted in previous animal threads, I got tired of people saying that these were “isolated” and “rare” and started keeping track of cases on my website. WARNING! This section is graphic and disturbing due to it’s honest reporting of cruelty cases! I can barely stand to maintain it and it frequently throws me into a depressive funk when I update it. But what keeps me doing it and logging new cases is the belief that people NEED TO KNOW AND SEE for themselves that this behavior is a serious problem, not an urban legend or a joke–the evidence is right there. And hopefully, it encourages people to take action and speak out.
BTW, I believe I found a news account of this online.
Zenster, thanks for bringing this to our attention and doing something positive to try and convict these obviously disturbed individuals.
Remember: People who abuse animals seldom stop there…
Ya know, I own some pet rats. They are sweet, gentle, cute, loving, and intellegent. To compare a couple of sick fucks like these to rats, ie “rat-bastards” is an insult to the noble rat. Did you know wild brown rats will take care of their sick and injured pack members? Don’t think these two cat-burners would do such a thing. I think we need to get jarbabyj in here to come up with a better insult-name for them. 
How about sadistic, depraved wastes of flesh that aren’t fit to lick cum off the floor of a porn booth?
I am a deep-down cat lover, my cats are probably as close to me as people and I care very deeply about all animals. (Not a vegetarian, however. Anyone wants to go into this, please open another thread)
I have to say, that if I saw someone doing this and had it in my power, they would be leaving the scene in an ambulance. 
AndYrAStar, I understand how you could feel that way, but rats can be very destructive. The times we’ve been without mousers, we’ve had serious infestations (chewing up storage boxes, animal feed, people feed, clothing in the laundry room) mostly because we live in an older house (c. 1860 or so) I think cats are the best preventative, even though they can be a bit cruel (they’re animals for gawd’s sakes!) but not everyone can keep a good mouser.
I’m going to be sick.
I tried not to open this thread, because stories of animal cruelty leave me in a sick grieving rage for days, but I could not stay away. You’re doing the right thing, Zenster. It seems like judges are finally waking up to the idea that animal torturers are twisted individuals who may go on to commit more serious crimes, and now is the time to press for more jail time and stiffer penalties. Your pictures may prove pivotal in doing just that. Kudos to you for having the intestinal fortitude to take them.
Again, I’m sending good karma your way to help Zen heal. What a fuck of a last couple of weeks it has been!
I have given much thought to the contents of this thread before posting a contribution.
I applaud Zenster for his/her actions regarding the two sick ‘people’ who set the cats on fire. It was absolutely the correct course of action and I hope these criminals are made to suffer greatly for what they did.
The link I give hereunder is in no way meant to diminish the horror that every poster, myself included, feels about the incident described.
Before the events of 11 September, there was a Great Debate concerning pet food which ultimately became a discussion between Podkayne and myself.
This discussion focused upon the methods used by a certain purveyor of pet food, who uses experimentation on cats and dogs in its development cycle.
I give this link here and merely comment that, in this thread anyway, I neither endorse nor decry the experiments described, which are not illegal, and are carried out in the name of science.
People are free to draw their own conclusions, to follow up areas of controversy, to email the supplier concerned, or whatever they wish.
If Podkayne should read this post, she should know that I tried to email her to acknowledge her last reply on the Great Debate thread referred to above, and that I suspected that she felt as I did, in that events of 11 September had realigned our discussional priorities, to state the obvious.
Zenster: I hope your dog gets better.
Re Fenris’s link: In case anyone else is afraid to look at it, I thought the “Westy” pictures were actually not bad at all - he looks like he’s getting so much love and care; it was nice to see his progress. They’re really nothing to get grossed out about. (I volunteer at a shelter and I’ve seen MUCH worse.)
Little Bird: you are so right - I dislike calling people by “animal” names. Animals don’t do to each other what humans do. I prefer the good old-fashioned swear-word insults. 
Sadly, I bet these monsters will plead down to some misdemeanor offense and get off by paying a relatively miniscule fine.
Bravo to you Zenster for being willing, and having the strength, to take those photos. I hope it helps put those sick fucks in jail. It will be interesting to see if they have had any other problems with the law in the past- as someone else mentioned, cruelty to animals is one of the hallmarks of a serial killer.
I used to work in an animal hospital and I know how dangerous rat poison can be. I hope your dog is okay. I remember when we got animals in who had been injured/hit by a car, we always gave them extra special care.
Unfortunately cases like this are all too common- a friend of mine was friends with a bunch of “good ol’ boys” whose favorite past-times were drinking beer, hunting, and fishing. Apparently, one night after they’d been drinking, one of the guys brought out a possun that he had caught in a trap and set it on fire, “just for fun”. Yes it was a wild animal, and not someone’s pet, but nothing deserves to die in that manner. It made me sick to my stomach and VERY angry. I hope those fuckjobs get the book thrown at them!
Zenster your actions are nothing short of heroic. I don’t know if I could have or would have been able.
There is no name harsh enough for persons who would commit such acts. But they are most assuredly sick. In addition to getting locked up for a long, long time, I hope someone realizes that they need psychological help or they will be doing the same and probably worse when they get out.
I took abnormal psychology in preparation for a music therapy degree that I eventually decided not to persue. We spent an entire evening discussing Jeffrey Dahmer. He did his early experimentation on animals. Practiced torturing them and disecting them. I can’t even begin to think what wacko, sicko fucked up people like these two might eventually do to their fellow human beings. We can only hope that someone somewhere sees where their abberant is leading. I’m thinking straight jackets, lobotomies and long term institutionalization accompanied by heavy doses of thorazine and shock therapy.
Seriously, I hope that they do get some kind of therapy. These boys weren’t born this way. It pains me to think of what has happened in their 18 years that has turned them into monsters. Of course, maybe they’re just insane.
Zenster, I’m not a frequent poster but I visit the SDMB alot and feel like I know you. I want you to know that you’ve been in my thoughts and prayers in the past few days. I hope with all my heart that Zen makes a full recovery.
Zenster, you are doing the right thing in helping to bring these fucksticks to justice.
Ugh. I had to take my kitty to the vet (routine) today and could not get the thought of these tortured cats out of my mind. I had the shakes through the entire visit.
Again, my best to you and my prayerful hopes for your doggie.
well, they may not be it yet, but i sure know what they will become when they die, the bastards.
If for some reason there is absolutely no way to seal up entrances to the house and eliminate any food source for them (the best way to keep them out), there are devices that produce some kind of sound that drives them batty. Apparently, they work very well, provided you get one with a wide enough range for your house.
<slightly off-topic rant>
I, too, keep rats as pets, so I know how wonderful, sweet, and intelligent they are (they’re just like dogs in tiny bodies). It breaks my heart and frustrates me that people get so riled up over something like this, but at the same time they feel okay with causing horrible deaths to such wonderful animals, and then talk about how awful and sad it is for the same thing to happen to a dog. I guess animals that aren’t widely viewed as cute and cuddly don’t count for anything. Yes, I know they can be a nuisance, but there are ways to keep them out of your home. If it’s a terrible death for a dog or a cat, why is it okay for animals that are just as intelligent? I don’t see people going around poisoning stray cats and dogs that become a nuisance.
</rant>
(Nothing against you personally, Zenster or Venoma, it just irritates me beyond belief.)