A wildlife protection group is offering a $1,000 reward to help find the person that “cruelly” shot a young raccoon with a crossbow and left it to die.
Police and conservation officers are also investigating the case of animal cruelty.
A woman in Maple Ridge spotted the severely injured animal last week trying to hide in her yard and called for help.
Veterinarian Dr. Adrian Walton rescued the raccoon, and said the animal would have suffered a slow, painful death because of the bolt's position in its body.
“This person took the shot and then just didn't give a damn,” Walton said.
The raccoon was euthanized and the RCMP seized the bolt, which Walton believed to be from a crossbow.
According to Walton, the raccoon was likely shot near the residential neighbourhood where it was found, and could not have travelled far in its condition.
“We could tell from the necrosis around the entry wound that this animal had been shot at least 24 hours, maybe longer, before,” he said.
Dewdney Animal Hospital posted video of the incident on Facebook, which elicited outrage from the community.
The Fur-Bearers, a wildlife protection group, has put up a cash reward for information leading to the identification of the person responsible for the "heinous" attack.
“There is absolutely no reason for an animal to be treated in such a horrendous manner,” said director Adrian Nelson.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Ridge Meadows RCMP at 604-463-6251, or the Conservation Officer Service’s RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277.
This isn't the first incident involving injured raccoons in the city. In January, another Maple Ridge resident found a raccoon shot by a dart gun in her yard.
The Dewdney Animal Hospital recommends that residents worried about raccoons should call a pest control company to trap and release the animal in a humane way.
With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Maria Weisgarber
