The owner of a one-year-old tabby cat says she ‘cannot believe that someone would be so cruel’ after her beloved pet was shot twice with an airgun in Ipswich.
Rebecca Garner, 26, spotted little Mabel slumped motionless outside some bins in the Shackleton Road area of Ipswich at around 4pm on Sunday, July 9.
The mother-of-four rushed her cat to an out-of-hours vet in Melton where they discovered she had been shot with an airgun.
She was kept stable overnight before being transferred to the Riversbrook Veterinary Group in Ipswich.
X-rays later revealed Mabel had been shot twice - once in her side and once in her hind leg.
Vets operated on the young cat, removing both pellets, but noticed her red blood cell count was still dropping.
A second operation showed she had internal bleeding caused by a 1cm cut in her spleen as well as a graze to her small intestine.
Mrs Garner said: “I was horrified when I discovered she had been shot, especially in the area where we live where there are lots of animals and children always out playing.
“I cannot believe that someone would be so cruel to someone’s pet.
“Mabel is such a friendly animal and the way she has been shot seems to indicate that she has been shot in the side and then as she ran away she was shot again from behind.”
Mrs Garner said a neighbour though she heard two gunshots in the area on the evening of Saturday July 8. They now believe it was the sound of an airgun being fired at Mabel.
Mabel has since made a full recovery.
“She’s back to her old self now - purring away all the time,” said Mrs Garner.
The RSPCA has backed calls for stricter regulations around owning an airgun.
Its figures reveal they have investigated 52 incidents in Suffolk in the last five years where a animal has been shot of targeted with an airgun.
RSPCA Inspector Jason Finch, who is investigating the case, said: “This is a deliberate act of cruelty and I am certain whoever has done this is purposefully trying to inflict pain and suffering on this poor cat.
“I would urge anyone who has any information to call the RSPCA inspectorate appeal line on 0300 123 8018. The incident has also been reported to the police.”
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