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Cats are shot by airgun yobs
A REWARD has been offered for information which leads to the conviction of sick yobs who shot two cats in Whitby, causing one of them to lose an eye.
The senseless attacks happened while the cats' owners were away on holiday and was only discovered when their children checked on the pets.
It is believed an air rifle was used and one of the cats, Poppy, needed extensive surgery, has lost the sight in one eye, and will be left will extensive scarring.
Felix, the other cat, will also need treatment after being shot in the cheek.
Darren Jones (32), of Derwent Road, is offering the reward on behalf of his parents, who he said were very distressed when they found out about the incident which happened on Monday night.
He said: "My sister had been looking after the cats for my parents. Poppy came back in and was obviously in quite a lot of distress. My sister thought straight away it had been shot from the look of the wound.
"The hair was going in to the hole where the pellet had gone in and her eye was badly damaged and we immediately took her to the vet.
"She had an operation and had to have one of her eyes removed and so has been left half-blind.
"What kind of person shoots a cat? It's disgusting and to me it certainly looks like some sort of air rifle has been used."
He added that 10 days earlier Felix had been taken to the vets' after they discovered blood on his chin.
A pellet was discovered in his cheek and he was undergoing treatment to remove it yesterday.
The family is offering a reward of 500 for information leading to a conviction, and they are also facing vets' bills of more than 500 following the shootings.
"The bills are not important," he said.
"We just want people to know there is someone out there carrying out these shootings.
"That's why we have decided to offer a reward for anyone who provides information to the police which leads to someone being prosecuted for this horrible crime."
Sgt Steve Pearse, of Whitby Police, said they were investigating the incidents, which took place in the Highfield Road area of Whitby.
He said: "We received a call at 10pm on Monday night saying that two cats had been shot.
"We took statements and are investigating the incident but I cannot comment on exactly what weapon was used at this time.
"This is a sickening and cruel act and we are treating it very seriously. I ask anyone who has an air rifle to ensure it is used correctly and stored safely."
Anyone with information is asked to contact Whitby Police on (0845) 6060247.
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Weather for Whitby
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 9 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North
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Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 17 C
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