Cat killer on the loose in Aston Manor

A cat killer seems to be killing cats with a pellet gun in the Aston Manor area.

Twané Bester from Aftonwold Way told Express one of her cats, Nezu, came home with a pellet gun wound in his side in December.

“Luckily, the wound healed and he’s fine. The next victim was our neighbour’s cat Morrissey, that was wounded twice at the beginning of January.”

Bester said her neighbour’s cat had one semi-healed wound on his shoulder and a fresher wound on his flank.

“He was shot again through the chest on January 11 and died two days later,” said Bester.

Bester also shared information from their security complex’s WhatsApp group which stated that another neighbour’s cat on Bryntirrold Street died after being shot.

This neighbour, Cedric Chidi, said his male cat, Katie, was two years and eight months old. He said Katie, like any male cat, roamed around but spent nights at home.

“The cat was found dead on January 13 around noon, but when we went back to the scene at 4pm, the carcass had been removed. I wanted to take the cat to a vet for a post-mortem.”

Veterinary nurse Teresa Kämmerling from Kempton Park Animal Hospital on Monument Road said this had been an issue for some years, predominantly stemming from the Aston Manor area.

“In the past year, we’ve treated about ten cats which suffered shot wounds.

“Three were brought in for major operations, of which one died, five were treated for wounds and two cats were already dead.”

Kämmerling said the cats were predominantly male, since they’re known to roam further than females.

Kempton Park SAPS was also contacted for information regarding this.

Spokesperson Capt Jethro Mtshali said: “We advise that any shooting of any kind be reported, let alone the killing of an animal. A person killing or wounding an animal in this way, could be charged under the Animal Cruelty Act 1962, which is punishable by law.”

He also said to date no case of this nature had been reported. He urged the community to do so.