Feral cat rescued from gruesome fish hook injury – Salt Rock

Crying and distressed, a helpless feral cat was finally caught after two weeks of suffering caused by a large hook in his mouth picked up from Salt Rock beach.

Feline Feral Fund’s Riki Yoko was alerted about the situation and tried to trap the cat in various locations until it was finally caught on Monday morning in Hotel Road.

“Many people got involved and even prayed that we would catch the beautiful boy who must have been in so much pain.

“We caught many a mongoose and one other feral cat during the two weeks of trying to catch him,” said Yoko.

The cat – nicknamed Captain Hook – was immediately brought to Aloe Vet and only then did they realise how deeply lodged the fish hook was in his jaw and that a big abscess had developed due to the infection.

Aloe Vet nurse Kerry Neave said they had to make quite a big cut through the cheek muscle to remove the hook, as they could not pull it out because of the barb.

He was also neutered and given antibiotics and an anti-inflammatory which should keep him comfortable and pain free. Yoko said she was highly frustrated with the hook situation on the beaches.

“Cats, dogs and people end up getting caught on these stray hooks because the fishermen are so negligent.

“We have to find a way to stop them from leaving their old bait and hooks behind. Imagine what would have happened to this poor boy if we did not see the hook or could not catch him?”

Yoko planned to release him on Tuesday, saying that the women who spent so much time trying to catch him would now try to tame the wild cat because he had stolen their hearts.

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