Last week, as I was walking to work, I saw three schoolchildren dragging a ginger kitten somewhere, squeaking desperately. I immediately sensed something was wrong, so I decided to follow them. The boys dragged the kitten into the yard and started setting its tail on fire. They held him by his paws and one of them tried to set his tail on fire with a lighter.

I was stunned by the cruelty of what was happening and had a sudden fit of anger. I lashed out at these animal abusers, screaming and punching the kitten away. I was even able to grab one of the boys by the hood to try and stop their cruel behavior. Eventually, I got him to take me to his parents.

When I told the boys mom what had happened, she started yelling at me and said they were still kids and didn’t know what they were doing. She also rebuked me for caring too much about the animals and should mind my own business.

I was surprised not only by the cruel behavior of the children, but also by their parents’ indifference to it. However, I now have Ryzhik, a kitten I rescued, who now lives safely in my home.