‘Zombie cat’ owner fights for custody
TAMPA: The Florida cat that crawled out of its grave after a traffic accident is now ensnared in a legal dispute over custody involving its owner and the Humane Society of Tampa Bay.
Bart the cat made international headlines last month when he surfaced five days after he was hit by a car and buried for dead.
The “zombie cat” was initially expected to return home after surgery at the Humane Society’s veterinary clinic, where Bart was treated for a broken jaw and facial injuries. One of his eyes had to be removed.
But the agency decided not to return the cat to its owner after learning more about “circumstances leading up to his burial”, the agency said.
Bart’s owner, Ellis Hutson of Tampa, filed a court motion earlier this week to demand the return of the black-and-white pet.
Mr Hutson claimed the society’s leadership sought to use Bart for fundraising, according to court filings provided to Reuters by the Humane Society.
The motion said Bart’s owner was not being allowed to visit the feline. Reuters could not reach Mr Hutson for comment, but he told the Tampa Bay Times that “this is our family pet. ... All I want is my family cat back.”
According to the newspaper, the Humane Society first revoked custody because of a video posted online and apparently removed after Bart returned. In it, a neighbour who helped bury Bart by a curb says: “He might not have been dead. ‘Cause when I found him ... he was moving and stuff.”
The agency has received donations from around the world that helped to pay for Bart’s care.