A family is shocked and angry after returning home on Tuesday without their beloved cat, Luna.

An adopted pet, Luna was shot twice on March 18 by an unknown shooter with a pellet gun, sustaining wounds to her left and right sides, reports Lowvelder.

Due to the severity of her injuries, Luna’s liver failed, and with fluid in her lungs, she succumbed to her injuries.

“We are heartbroken that someone can be so cruel,” said Luna’s owner Ettalize Maclean.

On the day of the shooting, she came home and found Luna lying in her son’s cupboard.

“We could see she was in pain and took her to the vet immediately,” she said.

Luna had been shot before, the pellet lodging close to her spine, in September last year.

Maclean had noticed that Luna was limping and took her to the vet, unaware that she had been shot.

“I was shocked when the vet called and said that they had found a pellet,” she said.

Veterinarians advised that the pellet could not be safely removed due to the risks involved.

Maclean spent more than R3 000 on treatment and now faces additional costs following Luna’s final stay at White River Animal Hospital.

She reported the incident to the White River Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and attempted to open a case at the White River Police Station. The police refused to open a case unless she could identify a suspect.

Another shooting

A shooting last year injured a leg of a cat named Miley.

In October 2025, Felicia Kritzinger’s pet sitter called her to say that Miley was limping.

Kritzinger took her to White River Animal Hospital and found out that she had been shot in her right front leg. The leg had to be amputated.

She ended up paying thousands of rands and was distraught.

“How can someone harm an innocent animal like that?” she asked.

Kritzinger also reported the matter to the SPCA and opened a case with the police, but it was later closed due to a lack of evidence.

White River SPCA inspector Michelle van Wyk told Lowvelder that pet owners who encounter a shooting incident should report it to the SPCA immediately.

Police informed the cat owners that if a suspect is apprehended, they could face charges of malicious damage to property and animal cruelty.

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