When Daniel Dockery took his 9-month-old cat Scruffy to an Arizona Humane Society shelter December 8th to treat a cut she suffered from a barbed wire fence, he couldn't pay the $400 cost of treatment.
Dockery, a 49-year-old recovering heroin addict, told the Arizona Republic that the agency refused to accept a credit card payment or wait for a wire transfer from his mother in Michigan because it was against policy. The organization gave him the choice to sign surrender papers so that Scruffy could be treated and placed in foster care. Dockery agreed.
Rather than receiving wound care, Scruffy was euthanized hours later, an act which has devastated Dockery. He raised the cat from birth and believes she helped him stay off drugs over the past year, the longest period he has stayed clean in his adult life.
After Scruffy's story broke last weekend, supporters threatened to pull donations from the center. Comments on Facebook, e-mails, and voicemails have flooded the organization with complaints, spurring some changes in policy.
Stacy Pearson, whom the agency hired to handle media inquiries, announced that the Arizona Humane Society has set up an account funded through donations to cover the costs of emergency treatment for animals whose owners need a few days to pay for the service. It will also accept credit card payments by phone now.
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