Veterinarians believe the person responsible for decapitating the cat whose head was recently discovered in Putnam Lake used "an extremely sharp knife or edge instrument," offcials say.
Because of that conclusion, and veterinarian's discovery of reported blunt trauma to the tissue beneath the animal's scalp, authorities are treating the incident as a criminal case.
That's according to the , which first received word about the cat from a Putnam resident around 8:15 a.m. Monday.
"The Putnam County SPCA responded to a complaint received from a Putnam resident who had observed a decapitated cat head in the road on Garfield Drive, near the intersection of Quogue Road in the Putnam Lake community of the Town of Patterson," officials said in a release. "Putnam County SPCA Humane Law Enforcement Officers arrived at the location within minutes and observed the decapitated cat head, a brown mackerel tabby, on the street. No blood or body was found at or near the scene."
Doctors at the in Southeast examined the head, which officers transported there.
"The veterinarian also estimated the cat was killed within three to five hours of finding the head," the SPCA said in a statement.
Authorities are asking anyone with information to contact them via the animal cruelty hotline at 845-520-6915, or this website. They say all calls will be kept confidential.
