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MSPCA seeks owner of cat found burned all over his body in a Roslindale parking lot

Burned cat getting treated at Angell

Dr. Wendy Huang treats the cat at Angell (photo by MSPCA-Angell).

The MSPCA reports its trying to find the owner of a severely injured cat that a worker at the Stop&Shop on American Legion Highway in Roslindale found lying in the store parking lot as she left work shortly before 11 p.m. on Feb. 11.

The worker rushed the cat to Angell Animal Medical Center in Jamaican Plain, where a veterinarian determined the wounds, all over his body, "are consistent with burns," the MSPCA says.

The ten-month-old cat, which Angell has named Dusty, is now recovering at Angell, where Dr. Rebecca Fellman and other clinicians are continuing to clean the wounds and change bandages regularly, in the hopes that the wounds will heal enough to be closed permanently with sutures. Recovery could take months and Dusty might still need to have one of his hind legs amputated, the MSPCA says, adding the cat is also getting antibiotics and painkillers.

Fellman said it's possible Dusty's burns were the result of an accident:

We don’t know how Dusty was injured. When it’s cold out, cats on the street often climb in wheel wells or under car hoods to stay warm, so it’s possible that Dusty was hurt when an engine was started by a driver who didn’t even know he was there.

Dusty was not microchipped, so Angell has no way of contacting his owners. Anyone with information on Dusty’s owner is asked to call the shelter at 617-522-5055.

If the owners aren't found, and Dusty recovers, the MSPCA will eventually offer him for adoption.

The MSPCA estimates Dusty's care could cost $5,000, and says it's set up a fund for anybody who'd want to donate.

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Comments

aw poor kitty.

Thanks I just started to tear up at work. Now I wanna go home and hug my cats.

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Voting closed 73

From now on, when I drive a car in the winter, I'm going to take a minute to check under the hood and in the wheel wells for cats. At least he's in good hands now.

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Voting closed 28

Don't even need to bend over.. just hit the hood or side panels a few times.. If there's an animal under there, it will be scared and run out.

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Voting closed 34

Luckily his injuries were not terrible, considering. He must have heard the driver getting into the car and started to hop out, but not before one of his ears was sliced. The vet was able to stitch the ear back in place but he was left with a hole right in the middle. This was the era of punk fashion so he was considered quite hip.

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Voting closed 38

Same happened to our cat Tiger as we were moving to MA from MD, staying at a friend's house. My dad couldn't find her in the garage so told his friend to start the car resulting in a weird noise. My dad opened the hood, immediately thought she was dead and omg what am I going to tell the kids? She then meowed at him and she spent two weeks at the vet with head injuries from the fan. She came up to MA on Flying Tigers airlines

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Voting closed 25

One of my cats came with no tail. I'm told she was hiding under a car and her tail got run over and had to be amputated. Thankfully she seems to do fine without it.

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Particularly on remote start. I found ours annoying but it apparently has to do with alerting creatures both outside and inside the car that stuff is happening.

I still tap the hood out of habit. No feral cats or rats in my area, but plenty of other critters may be seeking shelter.

I wonder if there are any aftermarket devices that make noises under the hood that would freak out any lurking creatures, as part of unlocking the car or maybe at regular intervals? Might take some research to see what works best.

Poor kitteh.

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Voting closed 26

I also tried the MSCPA website but don't see a specific program for Dusty's treatment.

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Voting closed 21

But looks like it goes to their general fund.

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Voting closed 17

It links to the Pet Care Assistance Fund, and the cat in the photo sure looks like Dusty

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n/t

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Voting closed 13