Whistler's animal shelter is still hoping for information to emerge about a pair of cats that were crammed into an undersized crate and left in a snow bank last week.
On Sunday, Jan. 19, a concerned citizen called Whistler Animals Galore (WAG) after he found the small crate “shoved into a snow bank” in Timber Ridge in the Bayshores neighbourhood.
The adult cats did not have collars or microchips, although one of them had a worn-out tattoo in its ear.
No one has come forward to claim the cats since they were turned over to the shelter a week ago. Now, WAG is hoping for any information from the public on the cats’ previous owners.
“We have a four-day holding policy for owners to show up. Nothing has been reported, nothing has been said,” explained adoptions coordinator Mallory Jenkins. “These guys got ditched and nobody has said a peep.”
Jenkins added that it is difficult to launch a cruelty investigation without any information on an animal’s owner, however, such cases are not without precedent. The BC SPCA launched an investigation in 2017, for instance, after a miniature poodle was found locked inside a suitcase and thrown down an embankment in Richmond. Pique was waiting to hear back from a BC SPCA representative at press time.
Jenkins said the cats appear to be in good health—although the full extent of their condition won’t be known until after a vet appointment—and are responding well to volunteers at the shelter.
“They’re still pretty spooked and pretty shy, and I think that’s because their world got turned upside down,” she said. “We have some really amazing volunteers who come in and really go at the animals’ pace. They’ve definitely started opening up.”
Despite the initial outburst of public concern on social media following WAG’s Facebook post about the abandoned cats, Jenkins said the shelter hasn’t been able to find anyone to drive the cats to their vet appointment tomorrow, Jan. 28.
“Everyone was really angry and upset about them getting ditched, but nobody wants to help drive them to their vet appointment. It’s a bummer,” she said.
Anyone interested in transporting the cats to their appointment can call WAG at 604-935-8364.
Jenkins also wanted to “give a little shout-out” to Sea to Sky NANA (Neighbourhood Animals Needing Assistance), a popular Facebook group run by a Squamish woman that has been instrumental in tracking down missing pets throughout the corridor and also posted about the abandoned cats.
“If people know that animals are missing or found, man, that has been such a helpful resource,” said Jenkins. “It’s kind of been a little nutty to see how far social media can reach. She’s amazing.”
