A tipster recently emailed us a link to a video with the subject "cat fights dog in ny traffic." The video is as grisly as the title suggests—a cat is seen fighting a dog in a busy intersection as people watch, cheer and, yes, film—while one woman repeatedly kicks the cat.
The fight stops traffic at times, and no one tries to leash the dog and walk away. The cat, who is dubbed "Heathcliff" by the person filming, is standing after the battle, despite being kicked and attacked by the dog.
The ASPCA did not immediately respond to our request for comment on the video.
Last year, when a video of a cat being kicked by a laughing young man was posted on Facebook, advocates traced the incident to Bed-Stuy, and the cat was eventually found by animal rescuers and nursed back to health.
As for Andre Robinson, the man who kicked the cat, he recently turned down a plea deal that would involve serving a month in jail. Robinson's lawyer claims he didn't kick the cat, but merely "jabbed" it.
In 2010, a man who admitted to killing one of his girlfriend's cats (he allegedly killed many others) pled guilty and received no jail time while a 205-pound man who killed his girlfriend's cat in "self-defense" pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 500 hours of community service.
Animal abuse investigations are overseen by the NYPD and ASPCA. While you can call 911 to report animal abuse in progress, you can contact 311 to report animal abuse that has already occurred. If there's video, you can report the incident to 311 online and share the link.