By Jenny Pace

The cat soon to be known as Westy arrived in our emergency veterinary hospital near Denver on Memorial Day 2001. The date was only too appropriate. Westy had practically been through a war. Witnesses said he had been thrown from a car window while apparently on fire.

Westy certainly looked like a victim of warfare. A large tabby cat, he had third-degree burns over 40% of his body, which smelled of smoke and charred fur. His peppery coat had mostly melted onto his body, his hindquarters were burned to the muscle, and his whiskers singed away from the heat. I was one of the nurses on duty that night and, along with the doctors, worked to stabilize him and assess his injuries. We weren't sure we could save Westy.

Our hospital is comprised of surgical and medical specialists who deal with extreme cases every day, so the decision was made to make him comfortable and give his owners time to claim him. Two days after his arrival, Westy was stable enough so that we could administer anesthesia and clean his wounds. Everything we used to touch Westy had to be sterilized to prevent infection. We also placed a feeding tube in him because he was not eating on his own. The doctors had to wait several more days before performing surgery so they could determine how much of his burned skin could be saved.

Meanwhile, the doctors notified the news agencies, which were sympathetic to Westy's condition. The media attention turned Westy into a local celebrity and a rallying cause for animal cruelty. The hospital was flooded with phone calls, from as far away as Germany and France. Hundreds said they would gladly adopt the injured cat. The community even raised a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of any suspects.

On June 8, 2001, the police in nearby Westminster, Colorado announced they had arrested two boys on animal cruelty charges in connection with the attack on Westy. They were teenagers, ages 16 and 17, who allegedly set the cat on fire in a middle-class neighborhood in Westminster (hence the name Westy). The 16-year-old was turned into Westminster police by his alarmed parents.

The suspects share a couple of traits with a large percentage of animal abusers in America: their age and their gender. According to The Humane Society of the United States's recently released 2001 Report of Animal Cruelty Cases, teenagers accounted for 20% of the intentional acts of animal cruelty in the 1,677 cases studied from January through December of last year. And of those troubled teens, a whopping 95% were male. It's with these statistics in mind that The HSUS is focusing attention on teenagers during this year's annual Animal Cruelty/Human Violence Awareness Week from April 14 to April 20.

The teenage focus is important. In recent years, psychologists, criminologists and sociologists have begun to recognize animal cruelty as a potential warning sign that a teenager could commit violence toward humans in the future. The HSUS's First Strike program attempts to break this cycle of violence before it spins out of control. One of the ways the program creates change is through working with legislators to toughen animal cruelty laws.

Colorado's cruelty laws certainly could use a little toughening. Because cruelty against animals is only a misdemeanor in the state, the teenagers served just two days in jail, paid a $500 fine and received an 18-month probation after they pled guilty to the charges.

In the meantime, Westy was displaying a tremendous fighting spirit and a will to live. He underwent five major surgeries, including two skin grafts to save his right hind leg and to close burn areas on his ribcage. Doctors had to amputate his left hind leg and tail because they were too severely burned to save. I was his primary care nurse and spent about four hours a day with Westy, bathing him, changing his bandages, and giving him physical therapy.

As his owner never claimed him, I was able to adopt Westy on September 28, 2001. He had his own press conference to announce his adoption. Present at the conference was Democratic state Senator Deanna Hanna, who was ready to introduce a bill, called "Westy's Law," which would make a second conviction for animal cruelty a felony in Colorado. The bill was introduced in January, and Westy went to the Capitol to lobby for it. It passed the Senate, but a similar measure in the House was killed in committee. The Senate version is now awaiting a hearing in the House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

When Westy is not promoting animal rights, he enjoys his numerous toys, kitty beds, and handmade quilts donated by his many admirers. He, in short, behaves like a normal kitty, a minor miracle in itself.

Jenny Pace is a veterinary technician at Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.