A neurologist says a cat will be permanently paralyzed after he was shot while walking around in Crystal Lake, but the family says the cat is “becoming happier every day” and no longer in pain.
Crystal Lake resident Kylie Rodriguez told Lake and McHenry County Scanner the incident happened on November 9.
Her pet cat, Timmy, was seen on her surveillance camera walking in the backyard normally at 9:37 a.m.
Just over an hour later, the surveillance camera captured Timmy injured and dragging his hind legs around 10:50 a.m.
Rodriguez said she found Timmy around 6 p.m. that day. He was meowing and dragging his hind legs.
She transported her cat to Companion Animal Hospital, which confirmed Timmy had been shot and a bullet was lodged in his spine.
The cat was diagnosed with paralysis as a result of the incident.
The bullet was not removed from the cat and Rodriguez was referred to a neurologist.
Rodriguez said in an update on Tuesday that the neurologist told her there is no chance of Timmy regaining function in his lower limbs.
The chance of regaining function with surgery is less than 5% and would come with a significant amount of recovery time.
The neurologist recommended Timmy start physical therapy, which will begin on Wednesday.
The cat will also undergo acupuncture and laser therapy. “The goal is to help him build strength and maybe one day heal,” Rodriguez said.
“The odd part about all of this is that after we visited the neurologist we began to see his tail move. Yesterday his leg was moving but also very stiff. I have notified the neurologist this morning but he’s not in until tomorrow,” Rodriguez said.
Timmy no longer appears to be in pain and is “becoming happier every day,” she added.
The cat has been wanting to go outside and meows at the door, so the family has been giving him small field trips outside.
“I am getting a better hang of expressing his bladder but we are also working on hiring nurses to come help with his care. Overall our goal is to keep him happy and entertained right now because he’s not used to all day indoor life,” Rodriguez said.
A GoFundMe account set up to help the family with ongoing veterinarian bills and specialty appointments has raised over $18,000 from over 500 donors, surpassing its $10,000 goal.
Rodriguez is offering a $500 cash reward to anyone who can help identify the shooter.
The woman lives north of Barlina Road and Huntley Road in Crystal Lake.
She said the townhomes west of Bard Road and Huntley Road are behind her home and she suspects the incident occurred near there.
A police report was filed with the Crystal Lake Police Department, which is investigating. No suspects have been charged.
Rodriguez said she has asked neighbors on her block for surveillance footage but none of them have cameras.
Rodriguez said she has not heard from the police recently on the investigation.
“The last I heard they had no suspects and weren’t able to obtain any further video footage but the investigation is still open,” she said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Crystal Lake Police Department at 815-356-3620 and reference report #24-022644.