By Martin J. KIdston
A week ago Thursday, Ellen Osborne came home from vacation, eager to return to her Highland Park neighborhood, her home and her pet cat, Wishbone.
What she found instead has left her heartbroken.
Wishbone, her pet cat of 13 years, had been shot twice and left for dead in the alley behind the Osbornes house.
When we came home from vacation, the babysitter said Wishbone had gone missing. She searched all over for him and found nothing, Osborne said. We came home Thursday and began looking for Wishbone, calling the shelters and vets. Nobody had him.
Osborne said she walked the neighborhood looking for her cat, and after a lengthy search, she found him dead in the alley under some trees.
He was shot twice with what appears to have been a high-powered air rifle, once behind the shoulder and once in the side, Osborne said. He was my baby, Id had him for 13 years.
Osborne said Wishbone was good with the familys youngest member their 16 month-old child. Outside the family, he was adored by neighbors and the woman who delivered their paper every morning. Wishbone, she said, never bothered a soul, and greeted everyone with fondness and trust.
He was a cat, yes, but he was also more than that, Osborne said. He was a member of our family, and there is no excuse for what they did to him. I hope they feel it some day.
Osborne said the incident occurred sometime Tuesday night, on the 17th of August. She suspects the cat died almost immediately. However, that does little to remedy her grief, and she and family members are still feeling the loss.
He was something special and had such a tremendous personality, Osborne said. We still look for him, and listen for his call.
I think the community should be concerned about someone who would do something like this. It takes a sick person to shoot someones pet.
Osborne said she cannot own another cat.
