DIN volunteers find cat shot in the face

 

 
It’s emerged that a cat has been shot in the face in the Lifford area.
Last weekend, two volunteers from Donegal charity Animals In Need spotted the cat whilst they were carrying out routine Trap/Neuter/Return of feral cats in the area.
X-rays of the injured cat this week have since revealed that the animal had been shot.
The AIN volunteers noticed that she was in poor condition generally, was extremely emaciated, suffering from cat flu and one side of her face appeared to be caved in and so they quickly caught her and brought her to the vets for assessment, where the full extent of the horrors this poor cat had endured were exposed.
A shocked spokesperson from AIN said ‘An x-ray at the vets showed metal shards in her jaw. No injury we can think of would present with metal fragments in the jaw apart from her having been shot in the face.’
The laying of poisoned bait is illegal under S.I. No. 481 of 2010 (Restrictions on Use of Poison Bait) Regulations 2010 and anyone breaking this law faces a fine of up to €5,000 or a year in prison or both.
If you have any information on the laying of poisoned bait, please pass it on to the Gardai or the Officers at the National Parks and Wildlife Service.