The vandalism of a beloved South Whidbey pet store and animal rescue over the weekend included bizarre and misguided accusations in spray-painted graffiti, according to the owner.

In response to the act of anger, a group of community members came together to help fix the storefront, adding graffiti of their own — “Love wins.”

Someone defaced the front of Critters and Co. at Ken’s Korner Friday night or Saturday morning. Owner Debbie Wilkie said an employee who came to work Saturday morning discovered the crime. The Island County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.

The nonprofit has provided refuge and sought medical care for hundreds of animals over the years, including more unusual pets like snapping turtles and sugar gliders. Raja, the storefront’s famous tortoise, can often be found roaming around Ken’s Korner.

Vandals spray-painted “Critters kills,” “parvo” and “murder” on the business, along with a drawing of a skull. Dumbfounded, Wilkie took to social media afterward to reach out to the vandals or anyone else who has a misconception about the mission of the store and animal rescue. She urged people to ask instead of acting on rumors.

Wilkie said she is left wondering about the motive behind the graffiti.

The term “parvo” refers to canine parvovirus, which is a disease contracted by unvaccinated dogs through vomit and feces, Wilkie explained, but it is treatable with an antimicrobial. The rescue is mostly foster-based, rendering the few animals inside unlikely to contract illnesses, she said. Critters follows a lengthy protocol for dealing with potential outbreaks.

Wilkie recalled Critters’ last parvo outbreak was a year and a half ago after receiving parvo-infected puppies from Eastern Washington. The puppies were quarantined in their foster homes, Critters shut its doors and everything was disinfected; parvo was never in the building.

Since there were never any cases of parvo at Critters, and Wilkie said she was unsure where the urge to spray-paint the word on the building would come from.

“Murder,” in particular, was spray-painted over a bird design on one of Critters’ storefront windows. Wilkie recalled three or four months ago several birds in Critters’ care died for unknown reasons but not due to neglect. The deaths were “devastating,” she said.

That the vandalism could be related to the birds’ deaths baffled Wilkie, who explained that Critters had been transparent with the public about what happened with the birds and what they knew. The birds were sent away for necropsies, but answers are illusive.

“We will tell you anything you want to know. We don’t hide anything,” she said. “So these people are just — I don’t know what their intentions are, to be honest with you.”

Vandalism is a first for Critters, and Wilkie found the incident “disheartening.” But the act of deprecation succeeded far more in demonstrating the community’s affection for the business and support of the animals.

Upon witnessing the vandalism for themselves that day, community members showed up with gloves, paint cans, security cameras and more to help out. Now, boards covering up the vandalism read “Love wins” and “We love Critters.” The bird design is fixed.

“It brought tears to my eyes to get that amazing support from the community. They were awesome,” Wilkie said.

Critters and Co. is accepting donations at zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/donate-to-help-critters-pet-rescue.