A FERAL cat has survived what appears to have been horrendous torture, including the slicing off of an eyelid.
The gruesome injuries inflicted on the cat, named Torti Girl, have sent shock waves through the community.
The cat is presently recovering at the Margate Veterinary Hospital.
Her top and bottom eyelids have been neatly sliced off, and the outer half of both front paws have been cut off. One back leg also has a deep cut, exposing the tendons.
After three weeks of searching for the cat, Margate resident, Colleen Walther, who feeds the ferals, said Torti Girl eventually arrived to eat dinner at the car park in Margate’s CBD on Tuesday evening this week.
Colleen, who has fed Torti Girl since she was kitten, was shocked when she saw her horrendous injuries.
She said Torti Girl trustingly allowed her to pick her up, and she immediately took her to veterinarian Dr Leon Brüggemann.
Dr Brüggemann said he had never seen anything like this before.
He said the wounds were difficult to explain, but that it was impossible to attribute them to razor wire or even a car accident. “It appears that somebody has done this to her on purpose,” he said.
Dr Brüggemann said the cat would not be euthanised. However, her eye would have to be removed, as would half of her left front paw, and at least one of the toes of the right front paw.
“As she is very tame and friendly, she will be homed, as she should not be sent back to the feral colony,” he said.
Colleen said she was ‘sickened and disgusted by humanity’ and ‘couldn’t get over how much the cat must have suffered’.
At this stage, the Lower South Coast SPCA is investigating, and anyone with information is asked to contact Michael Muller at 060 5020421. Informers may remain anonymous.
