GOLDEN — Sid’s jaw hurts, forcing the 2-year-old cat to eat mushy food and drink small sips of water, but he is home and getting better.
The brown tabby was brutalized Oct. 22 when his owner’s boyfriend allegedly took his anger toward her out on Sid, leaving bloody imprints of the cat’s face on the shower wall.
Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital cared for the cat for a cost of about $2,200 — an amount the owner can’t pay and the hospital can’t absorb.
That’s when the nonprofit group Victims Outreach Information came up with a solution.
The group offers last-resort assistance to crime victims in seven areas of Jefferson County. Sid’s situation made the group wonder: Why not extend that help to the dogs, cats and other animals that are injured in crimes?
“So many times in domestic-violence incidents, animals are abused by the perpetrators,” said Vista Exline, executive director of Victims Outreach Information.
The Sid Fund for Animal Crime Victims was born. So far, about $400 has been raised.
The fund will be used to help pay emergency medical bills associated with criminal acts in the 1st Judicial District, which includes Jefferson and Gilpin counties.
A few other funds help with animal medical expenses, such as the Westy Fund, but none target victims of crime.
Not only will the Sid Fund help animals, Exline said, but it will help owners who can’t pay the medical bills and might be unable to care for their animals.
That will relieve stress for the owner, Exline said.
When Sid’s plight became known, “people in the community wanted to help, but there is no mechanism for that to happen smoothly,” Exline said.
Dr. Eliza Mazzaferro, a critical-care veterinarian at Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital, said Sid was fortunate and will heal. But the second-best thing, she said, “is more good can come out of his situation.”
“Unfortunately, we and other vets do see a number of these cases every year,” Mazzaferro said.
Although the hospital does not turn animals away, Mazzaferro said, “a fund like this is extremely worthwhile.”
Ann Schrader: 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com
