Unnecessary suffering

Sept. 17, about 6 p.m., a lifeless kitten was found taking shelter in the electrical box at the end of our buildings in Griffin Park. It was scrunched up, head down, trying to stay warm. The kitten lifted its shaky head only once to hiss at our intrusion, obvious it was wild and dying.

We called Animal Control for assistance – closed. So we called the Bangor Humane Society – closed. Then we tried the Bangor Police Department which directed us back to Animal Control. So we called Bangor Housing Authority and they referred us back to Animal Control.

This suffering animal could be dying with just about anything from rabies to leukemia, to contamination from Birch Stream. While we were getting the runaround and nobody would take responsibility or assist us, the kitten lay dying a cold, slow death. With the population of children in Griffin Park one would think someone would act on this danger quickly. The kitten remained in its hideaway until the next day at 3 p.m. when we called the police pleading to have assistance and Officer Chris Randall responded.

After seeing the condition of the kitten Randall waited patiently until assistance arrived and he could remove this hurting animal. Our many thanks to this fine officer, who not only displayed sincere concern for our children, but he had a very gentle hand with the dying kitten.

An on-call person for off-hours should be made available for emergencies such as this. This was unnecessary suffering for the dying kitten and for the ones witnessing it.

Ann Birmingham

Bangor