WEST WHITELAND TOWNSHIP, Pa., Aug. 6 (UPI) -- A Pennsylvania man was arrested and charged with animal cruelty after police say he beat a kitten, dragged it from his moving car and forced the animal to ingest heroin.
When police first encountered 24-year-old James Myers, he was still in the processes of abusing the roughly 8-week-old cat, slamming and dragging it into the ground. Spray painted on the pavement not far from where Myers was brutalizing the kitten were the words "Slam it you [expletive]."
"I've never seen an animal abused by giving it heroin," Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said in a statement.
"The abuse of this kitten was a singularly depraved act. Heroin addicts abuse themselves, animals, and children without remorse or regret. What punishment is severe enough for this type of evil?"
Upon searching Myers' vehicle, police found hundreds of empty bags of heroin, numerous bags that were still full, 46 hypodermic needles, the rope allegedly used to drag the kitten and a small box of cat feces.
Veterinary doctors initially planned to euthanize the kitten, whom they've dubbed "Hope," but upon learning of the circumstances of its abuse, administered Narcan hoping the heroin contributing to its unresponsive behavior.
"And the kitten, just like a human coming back from a heroin overdose, suddenly bounced back up."
Myers is charged with cruelty to animals, drug possession and related charges.
Police use Narcan to rescue cat after police say a man injected the animal with heroin: http://t.co/xHDMqAyjI8 pic.twitter.com/Krf6ViuqqZ
— NBC10 Philadelphia (@NBCPhiladelphia) August 6, 2014
