'See something, say something'

Trish Lynn and Thom Donitz with friends.

The JOLT News Staff

Editor's note: Some parts of this column might be disturbing to readers.

For quite some time now we have all heard the phrase, “See something, say something.” Usually, we associate it with possible terrorist events, domestic violence along with child or elder abuse. 

Here at the Thurston Pets Project, we strongly believe this should also apply to animal abuse. Animal abuse or cruelty can take many forms, such as gross neglect, puppy mills or hoarding, organized abuse, such as dog or bird fighting, torture, sexual abuse and outright killings. 

The reason law enforcement keeps track of animal cruelty cases is because it often escalates to levels of violence, as illustrated by some of our nation's most infamous serial killers. It can also show a pattern in some domestic and child abuse cases. 

Back in 2018, reports came in of a pattern that showed a serial cat killer was responsible for the murders of at least 13 cats primarily in the Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater areas of Thurston County. The cats were surgically killed, and then left in public places for people to discover.

While the majority of these attacks were in 2018, several more were in 2019, with at least one with a “rewards flyer” attached to its body to make sure everyone knew it was killed by a human.

Even though a multi-agency task force was created and the events gained national attention along with numerous tips, no one was ever apprehended or identified. No one knows how or why the killer stopped, or if the killer just moved away. 

On a similar note, there is a documentary on Netflix called “Don’t F**K with Cats” where a sick and twisted excuse for a human being posted his deeds online and how some people on the internet community band together to help catch him. 

Washington state law already criminalizes animal cruelty with increasing penalties for the most severe cases: 

First-degree animal cruelty is a felony and involves intentionally inflicting substantial pain, causing physical injury, and/or killing an animal with extreme indifference to its life. 

Second-degree animal cruelty is a gross misdemeanor and involves knowingly or recklessly causing unnecessary pain or suffering. 

“Pasado’s Law” is a landmark Washington state piece of legislation passed in 1994 that made first-degree animal cruelty a felony offense, whereas before it was a simple misdemeanor. 

Pasado was a beautiful and beloved 21-year-old donkey who lived at Kelsey Creek Farm, a community park outside of Seattle. On the night of April 15, 1992, three teenage boys snuck in and, in the course of their stupidity, beat and tormented this sweet animal with sticks and a metal handle causing Pasado to strangle himself in his panic with the noose they had placed around his neck. The young thugs left him there to die. 

To make things worse was the minimal penalty his killers faced. The prosecutor only charged these thugs with breaking and entering because it carried a heavier sentence than beating a defenseless animal to death, as Washington state’s anti-cruelty laws had gone unchanged for more than a century. 

Since the passage of Pasado’s Law, the organization, Pasado’s Safe Haven, has continued to promote animal welfare legislation and reforms, including making animal neglect a crime (2004), strengthening dog breeding standards (2009), banning dog leasing (2018) and a bill to make animal cruelty a ranked felony (House Bill 1961, passed in 2024). In May of this year, House Bill 1149 was signed into law and went into effect in July banning animal fighters from owning any animals. 

While this represents the worst end of the spectrum, not too far up the scale we have what everyone knows as “puppy mills." Fortunately, they are slowly being closed, but they do exist. 

These are not to be confused with responsible and accredited breeders, or the simple family trying to find a good home for some puppies or kittens. 

In the mid-1980s, the FBI began noticing and paying attention to the research being conducted about the link between human and animal violence. This type of violence often occurs in family violence situations, where animals become the victims of the perpetrators like human beings do.

Many states now have felony cruelty statutes to acknowledge the true danger often associated with this form of violence with some states adopting cross reporting laws between human and animal professionals. 

Although a pattern of animal cruelty helps law enforcement authorities assess the future threat potential of suspected and known criminals, we need to recognize every case of animal cruelty at the hands of an abuser. 

If you witness or suspect animal cruelty, you should: 

• Contact your local authorities: either your local animal control or the police. 

• Document evidence. Safely take photos or videos and note the time, date and location of the incident. 

Paws for thoughts

“We envision a world where every animal has a right to live free from abuse, abandonment, neglect and exploitation ... these animals are all sentient beings who can feel fear and pain and crave love, comfort and safety” — Pasado’s Safe Haven 

Thom Donitz and Trish Lynn are neighbors and close friends who share their love of animals and wildlife. Trish and Thom are residents of Tumwater. Contact them at  pets@theJOLTnews.com.