TORONTO

A kitten tossed from a car on Hwy. 427 is on the mend with eight lives to spare.

“He will never have to use another life again,” said Mandi Howard, who pulled over on the highway to rescue the eight-week-old kitten on Dec. 3.

Howard was driving on the 427 when she thought she saw someone throw trash from a vehicle ahead.

“I didn’t know what it was but I saw fur blowing so I stopped at the side of the road,” Howard said.

The pink-haired nurse made the 500-metre trek to the badly-injured kitten while dressed in her blue emergency room work clothes.

“I could have been hit at any moment, but I stand out. I’m noticeable and people were slowing down,” Howard said.

“When I got there, I didn’t know if he was dead or alive. When I picked him up he was screaming. I was grateful that he didn’t bolt, but I didn’t know at the time he couldn’t run.”

She drove straight to the Toronto Humane Society and stayed there until she knew the kitten was going to be OK.

The Toronto Humane Society said the kitten — assigned the name, Pedro, by the THS — suffered broken toes, a broken hip and cuts. The recovering feline is in foster care with a THS staffer.

“Other than his injuries, he is a well adjusted sweet little kitten and a purr-machine,” said THS spokesman Makyla Delco.

“It will still be another month or so before he will be ready for adoption.”

Howard said her adoption papers are filed out and she can’t wait for the day she can take the kitten, which she plans to name Wonder.

“He is going to have a wonderful life,” she said.

Police have reviewed highway surveillance cameras.

“We are looking at leads but there is nothing yet to lead us to a suspect,” said OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt.

In Ontario, a cruelty to animals conviction can result in up to two years in jail, fines of up to $60,000 and a life-time ban on animal ownership.

“The greatest thing would be for this person to get caught. Every time I think about it I want to vomit. I want punishment for this person,” Howard said.

To help cover the vet bills for Wonder, Howard has turned to crowdfunding on Indiegogo and on Tilt.

Howard says if the total collected surpasses what’s needed for the kitten’s vet bills, the additional amount will be donated to the THS.