An Armagh woman has spoken of her dismay after two of their cats died in the space of 13 days in suspected poisoning incidents.
The Orangefield estate resident, who has asked not to be named, was the owner of cats Bella (9) and Ted (2), who both passed away in recent weeks in suspicious circumstances.
Bella was the first to take ill, with a two-day stint in the vet determining that she had been poisoned. She then died after returning home.
Following this, Ted went missing last Monday (November 6). The family managed to find Ted, before taking him to the vet on Friday morning, where they discovered that Ted had been given “some form of acid”.
“His whole mouth was burned and he had to be put down,” the owner explained. “He was in so much pain that there was no coming back from it.
“With the degree of the burns we believe it was done forcefully.”
Related: Owner of family cat horrifically burned with bleach in Armagh brands culprit ‘evil’
While the owner has been unable to confirm if these attacks were deliberate, she thinks it has to be “more than a coincidence” for two of her cats to die within a space of less than two weeks.
“Something is going on in this area, as our neighbour’s cat had been badly injured before,” she added.
“We’ve been left totally heartbroken, and with a hefty vet bill. I’m left without two of my beloved animals. We were only just getting over the death of the first, but for this to happen again… We have a good community up here but there’s some bad people about.”
A spokesperson for the PSNI said: “Officers did not attend. The local council would always lead on animal welfare issues.”
