Reward offered for information that leads to animal cruelty arrest

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, March 17, 2026

PORT HADLOCK — A reward for information that leads to the arrest of an individual responsible for shooting a cat in the face is being offered.

The cat, Penny, is in critical condition after she was found last Wednesday near the Old Alcohol Plant Inn in Port Hadlock.

“She was brought to our clinic with what was believed to be a broken jaw,” a Center Valley Animal Rescue (CVAR) Facebook post said. “Radiographs confirmed that not only is her jaw broken, but that she had also been shot in the face.”

The bullet exited Penny’s face, leaving behind multiple bullet fragments, extensive trauma to her jaw and tongue and severe infection.

The skinny cat was dehydrated and wasting away, the post said.

Despite her injuries, Penny is now purring, making biscuits and wants pets from her medical staff, the post said.

CVAR is offering a $500 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the individual responsible, the post said.

“This case is particularly concerning as it marks the second animal treated by our clinic for gunshot wounds in less than a month,” the post said. “We need to do better as a community in not tolerating torture and abuse.”

At the end of February, a seal, discovered at a marina in Quilcene, was found to have been shot in the face.

CVAR board director Sara Penhallegon said that finding evidence of cruelty toward animals is not uncommon at CVAR.

“We definitely get animals in that have gunshot wounds,” she said last month. “We had a barred owl in not too long ago. It had to be put down for those injuries. We get raccoons, we get opossums, we get all kinds of wild species that come in with gunshot wounds or arrows.”

In October, a separate seal was found in Port Ludlow shot in the face. That seal died of its injuries at a marine mammal rehabilitation facility in Des Moines after several weeks of treatment from medical staff.

“Silence only protects cruelty. If you have any information at all, please contact our office or local authorities,” the post said.

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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@peninsuladailynews.com.