‘Gothic Kittens’ Seized Owner Arrested
Holly Crawford
Holly Crawford, a 35-year-old dog groomer, who runs a pet grooming business from the basement of her home has gone on trial in the northern Pennsylvanian for inflicted pain on the 3 cats to make money. Her home outside Wilkes-Barre was raided after animal cruelty investigators received a tip that she was marketing the animals online for hundreds of dollars.
The ‘gothic kittens’ had their ear, neck and tail piercings and were being sold on Ebay. But since Ebay prohibits the sale of live animals someone would have tipped the authorities.
The three kittens were advertised as “pure black, tailless, pierced, gothic kitten.” Their tails might have been removed on purpose and those painful piercings done on their delicate 
bodies. The poor kitten had 14-gauge piercings on both ears and a submission ring at the back of its neck! The three kittens had been pierced a total of ten times.
She asked for offers over $400 for the kitten, the jewellery and a silk submission lead to clip onto the neck ring.
Miss Crawford says she used sterilised needles and made sure the kittens were healing properly. She said she wasn’t trying to hurt them and she didn’t act maliciously.
Melinda Merck, an animal cruelty investigator and vet, told the court that the ear piercings altered the cats’ hearing.
She said that the piercings at the back of their necks and base of tails hampered balance and jumping.
“They were maimed and disfigured,” she said.