Written by PETA
UPDATE: Mary Bale has been charged with two counts of animal cruelty.
Picture this: A middle-aged woman walks down a residential sidewalk. A friendly cat jumps up on a ledge. The woman stops, pets the cat, and … looks for the cat's guardians? Keeps on walking? No. She pushes the cat to a trash bin, slams the lid, and strolls quickly away.
You don't have to picture it, because the whole sickening scene, which happened in Coventry, England, was caught on a security camera video. The cat, named Lola, spent 15 hours trapped in the bin on a hot day, terrified and eventually covered in her own waste, before her guardians heard her faint cries and rescued her. The woman has been identified.
Lola's ordeal is a prime example of why letting our cats roam outdoors unattended isn't doing them any favors. Cruel people, as well as traffic, poison, aggressive animals, disease, and countless other dangers lurk outside our doors. For tips on keeping cats content in the "great indoors," check out PETA president Ingrid E. Newkirk's book 250 Things You Can Do to Make Your Cat Adore You.
Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post
By signing up here and giving us your details, you are acknowledging that you've read and you agree to our privacy policy.
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
Follow PETA on Twitter!