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Barrie cat-napper admits to trapping Tuscan, puts blame on cat owner

Barrie family says Tuscan was let out by mistake after their young child learned to open the door

The Barrie family grieving over their cat being transported almost five kilometres away and released near a busy highway and wooded area to fend for itself received no comfort today in knowing the woman accused of trapping their feline friend will receive just a fine.

On Tuesday, Tuscan the cat got out of his Violet Street home in the city’s south end when owners Brian Chard and fiancée Devon Miller were informed that their cat was being held in a cage in the backyard at another neighbourhood home.

“We were told by a neighbour that they saw Tuscan in a cage in the backyard of the woman who trapped him,” Chard said.

 “We went over and this woman who took our cat told us that he ended up on her property and she took it out to the field at Bradford Greenhouse and released it.

"She was completely stone cold mean about it when she said it," he added. "We called the police and even the officer who questioned her came back to us in disbelief as well. She just flat out admitted it and didn’t care.”

This afternoon, city police announced that a 54-year-old Barrie woman had been issued notices under city bylaws for using a live trap to capture a cat and failure to ensure a cat is provided with food/water/shelter while captured.

BarrieToday was able to track down the accused, Pam Elliott, at her home this afternoon.

“All I do is look after birds in the backyard. I put out bird feeders, I put out birdbaths," Elliott said. "I go out in the mornings or afternoon and there are bird carcasses and dead mice on my doorstep. It goes on all the time.

“I put out the trap once on a Tuesday and within a couple of hours there was a cat in it.”

Elliott showed a reporter a photo that indicates at least three traps had been set in the accused’s backyard.

When asked if she'd attempted to trap pets before, she reiterated that she had bought the traps Tuesday and set them up.

She was also asked about about the accusation that she drove five kilometres from her home to Bradford Greenhouse, located at County Road 27 and Dunlop Street, to dump Tuscan in the area, to which she admitted doing.

“I thought about taking it to the SPCA, but figured they’re just going to come pick it up and then it will be right back in my backyard again, because it's always in the backyard,” Elliott said. “There’s another cat back there often that is black and white, and another that is there infrequently that’s kind of grey-coloured.”

Elliott also commented on the public backlash over what happened.

“I didn’t steal it from anybody’s house. I don’t have any dead carcasses in my backyard,” Elliott said. “I offered the police to come search the property and stuff, but now I’m a serial killer of cats, dogs and small animals.”

Chard’s fiancée, Devon Miller, said she's not happy that their pet was taken and let loose a few kilometres away, but even less so that the accused is only facing bylaw infractions.

“I just feel that the charges that have been laid have no weight to them. They’re a bit of a glorified parking ticket,” she said. “I don’t think they’re harsh enough in terms of stopping this woman from doing what she did to us and what she may continue doing down the road.

"Being slapped on the wrist with a few $100 fines here and there, I don’t feel that is enough at this point," Miller added. 

Elliot said she didn't know there was a bylaw against trapping an animal, but that was fully explained when the infractions were handed to her.

She said that while she disagrees with being fined, they are just bylaw offences to her.

“They’re just bylaw fines, but it’s not right,” Elliott said. “If I had a trap in my yard every single day, there would be nothing in it if people were responsible for their pets.”

The Chard-Miller family believes Tuscan may have been accidently let out by their two-year-old child, who has recently learned how to open the door.

However, they don't believe that's reason for someone to trap him and deliberately release him into an area not only far away from home, but also one near a busy road and a wooded area with predators.

“She could have contacted us and got mad, saying anything from 'I hate your cat, come get it', or 'please make sure this doesn’t happen again'. It's never happened before,” Miller said. “How someone could trap a pet and get rid of him they way she did is malicious and cold-hearted.”

BarrieToday asked Elliott if she felt badly for the family which is now missing their pet, particularly their two young children.

“Yeah, I do. And I feel for my birds. I feel terrible when there’s bird carcasses dead back there and I feel guilty because I’m feeding them and I have hummingbird feeders back there,” said Elliott.

“Either I have to take down my hummingbird feeders and take away my bird baths and stop enjoying my backyard, or get rid of the cat situation," she added. "Yep, I should have called the bylaw enforcement. I did that four years ago when the people next door had a dog barking constantly and all I get from them is grief.”

However, Elliott asked whether the Chard-Miller family had also been charged for having their cat outside.

Elliott said she feels they handled the situation incorrectly from their end, too.

“People call it their baby? Well I’m sorry, if my baby got out in the morning, I’d go look for it,” Elliott said.

With many online comments attacking Elliott, police have issued a statement reminding the public that making threats and harassing others is unacceptable and could be considered a criminal act.