Cat owner distraught after pet died after being shot

Kath Savage, of Lea View, found her Siamese cat, Rusty, frothing at the mouth and in agonising pain by her back door last Wednesday.

Mrs Savage put her cat on the table and was horrified to find blood on his fur near the top of his leg.

In a desperate panic, she rushed him to the vets where an x-ray showed a pellet had gone through his intestines, causing internal bleeding.

Later that evening, Mrs Savage received the dreaded news Rusty should be put down as he would not last the night. “We are heartbroken and just can’t believe it,” she said. “He was making the most horrendous noise and trying to be sick.

“I thought he had been poisoned, but he wouldn’t let me anywhere near him. But when we got him to the vets it showed he had been shot.”

The family have been devastated by Rusty’s death, especially their other cat Barney.

Mrs Savage said: “He is absolutely distraught. He is off his food, going from room to room in the house crying and looking for him.”

In a bid to find out what happened, Mrs Savage contacted the police and her local neighbourhood watch team.

She said: “I want to know if anyone knows of someone with an air rifle that lives in the Roman Road area of Brookroyd.

“This is a cruel act that should be stopped.”