Florida Woman Throws Cat Into River While Arguing With Ex; Arrested For Animal Cruelty

A Florida woman has been arrested on animal cruelty charges after she allegedly threw a cat in a crate into a waterway while arguing with her ex-boyfriend.

Fortunately, the cat, Stanley, was rescued and is doing fine.

Volusia County Sheriff’s Office in a statement on Facebook said that police were called to address a domestic dispute at the Riverwood Park Campground at 298 H H Burch Road, Oak Hill, on Thursday around 7 p.m.

On arrival, the officers were told that 53-year-old Christa Anne Thistle was feuding with her long-term boyfriend, with whom she had recently broken up.

The duo had gotten into an argument over the boyfriend not moving out fast. During the feud, Thistle started throwing her ex-boyfriend’s belonging out of the RV. She is then said to have picked up the cat’s crate, along with the feline inside, and threw it into the Intracoastal Waterway, police said.

The woman’s ex-boyfriend jumped into the river to save the cat, but it is estimated the feline was submerged for at least 20 seconds, according to police. The responding officers found the cat wet and shivering upon their arrival. The ex-boyfriend, who has not been identified, was wet from the waist down.

A commenter on Facebook wrote, "So sad to do this to an innocent animal. They don't ask for much. Don't want a pet, can't handle a pet... Don't get a pet."

The Volusia County Animal Services took Stanley for follow-up evaluation and care.

Thistle was charged with animal cruelty and a simple assault charge was later added after she demanded "to be taken to jail so she could make a phone, bond out and kill her ex-boyfriend," police stated in the Facebook post, WKRG reported.

The woman, however, has denied all the allegations against her. "She was transported to the Volusia County Branch Jail where she remained in custody Friday morning with no bond pending first appearance," the Sheriff’s office stated.

Last month, a self-proclaimed pet rescuer in South Florida pleaded guilty to animal cruelty and was sentenced to 364 days in prison, after hoarding and starving cats to death. Police were called to the woman’s residence after neighbors complained of foul order. The responding officers found several dead cats in various stages of decomposition as well as malnourished felines.