ANTHONY, Fla. -- A Florida man spent his birthday in jail after deputies say he intentionally cut the tails off of five, four-week-old kittens after being told by the owner not to touch them.

Marion County deputies arrested James Steele Reid on Monday, November 27, his 68th birthday.

According to the owner of the kittens, Reid got into a verbal altercation with her husband on their farm where Reid volunteers.

Reid then grabbed a pair of garden scissors along with iodine and told a co-worker that he was going to cut the tails off the victim’s kittens, deputies say.

He told witnesses that he wanted the victim to “look at those cats and think of him.”

Soon after, a witness saw Reid exit the barn with the kittens’ tails in his hands.

Marion County Animal Control veterinarians advised that the “tail docking” was done improperly due to the age of the kittens, the lack of anesthetic and the fact that the wound was not stitched to assist with the healing process.

Reid has been charged with Animal Cruelty. He posted his $2,000 bond Monday night.