28592 Signatures Collected

PETITION CLOSED

PETITION TARGET: Minister of Justice Koen Geens

PETITION UPDATE: In October 2019, the suspect received a six-month prison sentence, a €4,000 fine and a life-long ban on owning pets. While six months is not enough time to match the severity of the crime, we thank officials for banning him from ever having animals in his care again.

In an incomprehensible case of animal torture, a young Ukrainian man placed a 10-month-old kitten named Sprotje into a 200-degree oven and “cooked” her for 15 minutes at a party in Kortrijk, Belgium.

Miraculously, Sprotje survived this hellish experience, thanks to a partygoer who rescued her from the oven and placed her into a cold shower. However, it was two days before the cat, suffering from deep burns and internal bleeding, saw a veterinarian.

Valérie Huyvaere, the vet caring for Sprotje, said the cat’s internal injuries indicated that in addition to being placed in a blazing hot oven, she had also been used as a football.

Traumatized Sprotje still has a long road to recovery ahead, due to her gruesome injuries – including extensive open burn wounds over most of her body. She can’t walk due to painfully blistered feet and will need months of dressing changes and intensive care to recover fully.

A complaint has been filed with police and animal welfare authorities in Belgium, who are currently investigating this depraved individual.

Sign this petition to urge Minister of Justice Koen Geens to prosecute Sprotje’s attacker to the fullest extent of the law, and send the message to other potential animal abusers that such cruelty will not be tolerated.