TLDR: found a smashed and dying cat on the road. Paid to euthanize it. Should I try to find the owner and tell them?
It’s been an absolutely terrible day. I have been super emotional about it so please be nice.
I’ve only been in the country a few weeks, do not speak Japanese (SOFA) and the situation would have necessitated far better language skills than I could realistically have anyway.
I was driving home in a fairly rural area and saw a lump in the road. It was an adorable little ginger kitten that couldn’t have been more than 5 or 6 months. It was panting and blood was on the road. I knew I was in way over my head.
I picked up the cat and boy it didn’t like that: arching and clearly in so much pain. It’s jaw was broken and blood coming out of its nose. Blood all over its face. Had a possible seizure on the seat while I was driving.
Phone at 9% but I needed the GPS to drive to a local vet about 6 miles away. Not a vet. Drove to another vet. Closed for a 2 hour lunch. Phone at 7%. I start to panic now. I have an infant and seriously injured cat in my car, no juice on my phone, my oldest is coming home from yochien in an hour, living in a rural area with the next vet 30 minutes away. I’m standing by the door starting to get emotional as a staff member came out. Used Google translate to ask for help.
The vet was able to do a CT scan and said with a broken jaw and the head injury, he couldn’t help it. I asked if he could euthanize it and stood by as she passed. My phone died.
Paid 10,000¥ for the service but had no idea how to ask how to ask for them to deal with the cat. Tbh, I would have paid a lot more if the vet thought there was anything he could do to help her. Now I’ve got a cat in a box in my garage until tomorrow when I can take her to the base vet since they said they’ll take her.
The little farming neighborhood she was hit in had a few houses along the road (maybe 6), she was clean and had no fleas. I do not think she was a stray.
Should I go back and ask around if someone has lost their cat? I didn’t hit the cat but I wasn’t going to let it suffer more than it already was. Would I cause more problems for myself if the owner takes issue with what I did? I know what I did was for the best but I feel terrible that someone could be wondering what happened to their cat but I also don’t want to get into trouble. I don’t think it’s a good look as a foreigner showing up at someones house to tell them through my phone that I euthanized their smashed cat.
by isrwzwerebebeingbeen