COEUR d'ALENE — With a noose around its neck, a cat was dunked in diesel oil by some mean-spirited person.

That’s the theory, anyway, after the diesel-drenched cat was brought to Alpine Animal Hospital by a good Samaritan on Saturday.

"He smelled so strongly you almost couldn't be in the same room with him," said Amber Clark, a veterinarian who worked on the cat before it had to be put down.

Clark said the cat had bruises, wounds and deep lacerations on his neck that were consistent with a noose or attempted hanging.

"It had to have been dunked," said Leslie MacMaster, lead technician at the clinic. "It was covered from its head to the end of its tail with the same amount of oil."

Oil was also found in its lungs.

"The smell was so strong that after two baths, the whole clinic still smelled like a body shop," said Tawnie Bailey, owner of the clinic.

The cat's body temperature was so low it didn't even register on the thermometer. The temperature was below 93 degrees; the normal is 101.5.

Clinic workers gave the black cat two baths, IV fluids, antibiotics and pain medication. However, the cat still had abnormal breathing and seizures.

"He seemed to be in so much pain and suffering that the most humane thing was a peaceful passing," Clark said.

A woman who is a client at Alpine found the cat on her porch in the area of Montana Avenue and 13th Street. The cat did not have any identification so the owner is unknown.

MacMaster said the cat has bruising behind both of its ears and legs, as if it fought to get an apparent noose off its neck.

"I thought about bringing it home, but unfortunately that didn't happen," MacMaster said. "Animal abuse hits all of us hard at the clinic. I can't say what I'd like to have done to the person who did this."

The cat was found in the same vicinity as a cat who took a 4.5-inch blow dart to the face last May in the area of North Eighth Street and East Birch Avenue. That cat survived. No suspects were found despite a reward of up to $5,000 offered by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

While the cat abuse cases were in the same neighborhood, it would be difficult for investigators to link the two cases since they were nine months apart and the types of abuse are different.

"The MOs (modes of operation) appear to be different even though they were in the same area," said Coeur d'Alene Police spokesman Jared Reneau, adding he isn't aware of any other recent animal abuse cases.

Reneau said sometimes residents become angry and take abusive actions when cats wander onto their property.

"It's something we take seriously, but it's difficult to investigate because oftentimes there are not a lot of clues left behind," he said.

Clark said the most recent case has left clinic staff disgusted.

"It's very disturbing that there's a person out there who is capable of doing that," she said.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police at 769-2320.