LYNNWOOD — Skeeter lived with a compound fracture to his leg for a week, until a woman saw the injury and rushed him to a ferret rescue, according to Lynnwood police reports.
A local veterinarian found bones protruding from the ferret’s skin, cigarette-sized burns and a hematoma on an ear. It was the “worst animal abuse” the vet had ever seen, police wrote.
The owner was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of felony animal cruelty, as well as possession of meth and heroin with intent to deliver. He’s suspected of dealing drugs out of an extended stay motel in Lynnwood.
Police first spoke with the Kenmore man about a ferret Jan. 23. His girlfriend’s sister reported he’d thrown Skeeter across the inside of a car, and that the animal had a fever.
The man denied knowing anything about a ferret.
Officers were called again Wednesday. An acquaintance had taken the pet to a ferret rescue, then to a veterinarian in Kirkland.
A doctor unwrapped brown bandages on one of Skeeter’s right legs, unleashing an awful smell. The vet performed emergency surgery. The injuries were so severe that some of the ferret’s toes had to be cut off, and the leg might still need to be amputated, depending on how it heals.
A makeshift splint had been built out of Q tips.
His tail was so damaged it could fall off. The wounds to the ear suggested he’d suffered blunt force trauma. There were other gruesome injuries.
Officers confronted the 33-year-old owner.
This time, the man reported he’d bought the ferret a couple of weeks ago. He said he’d been driving with the pet in his lap, when Skeeter bit his finger to the bone. (He had a small tooth mark on one finger, but nothing serious, police wrote.) Afterward he hit the ferret in the head with a removable cup holder, he reportedly said.
As for the other injuries, the man said he thought the ferret’s tail got caught in the cage. He’d shaved it and bandaged it, he reported. Police noted some of the burn marks on Skeeter’s body and tail were the size of a cigarette.
Court records show last year the man had been sentenced to 12 months on probation for possessing drugs. He’d been caught with heroin, meth and cocaine in a Bothell motel, according to charging papers in that case.
An officer told the man they would get a warrant to search his room for evidence of animal abuse. He replied that they would find drugs on his desk. In the room, officers recovered half an ounce of methamphetamine and 1¼ ounces of heroin. They found straws, foil and cash with a brown residue on it.
The Kenmore man remained in jail Friday with bail set at $25,000. Police also found paperwork showing he bought another ferret Jan. 28. That pet was left with his girlfriend.
Caleb Hutton: 425-339-3454; chutton@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snocaleb.
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