Pellet gun cat killing outrages resident
A Durban North resident feels that society has 'lost moral compass', after discovering a cat that had been shot and killed by a person wielding a pellet gun.
DURBAN North resident, Owen Oneill, expressed outrage last week after he discovered a cat that had been shot and killed with a pellet gun on Smiso Nkwanyana Road (Goble Road) over the weekend.
Oneill, who feeds local feral cats, received a call from someone in the area who had spotted the feline’s carcass on the side of the road.
“It is never clear whether the cat is in fact dead, so I always go and investigate, and if I do find that the kitty has passed away I remove them from the road and bury them, just to give them some dignity,” he explained.
According to the animal lover he initially suspected the cat had been knocked down by a vehicle, but when he inspected the cat’s injuries he noticed that the body was ‘perfect’ except for a wound at the top of the skull.
“On further examination I realised that this was a gunshot, probably a pellet gun. So looked for an entry site and found it at the base of the skull behind it’s left ear. It was a deliberate close rage shot. It makes me sick to know that we actually live amongst people who willingly harm innocent animals. Society has lost its moral compass,” he said.
Oneill felt that it was unfair for people to view the cats a a nuisance as it was ‘a man made problem’. “People are quick to complain about the cats, but regularly I see another dumped kitted at the colonies that I care for. If people had taken responsibility the cats would not be there in the first place,” he said.
