BY SARAH ROBINSON

Last updated at 12:14, Thursday, 12 April 2012

AN Egremont animal-lover has been left devastated after her pet cat was poisoned with anti-freeze.

Tilly fell ill on Monday evening and due to her internal injuries had to be put to sleep the following day.

Her owner, Marian Finn, says she is unsure whether her 12-month-old grey tortoiseshell cat was purposely or accidently poisoned.

She said: “I don’t like to think that someone could have done this deliberately, it is just too cruel, but it seems it is a possibility.

“In the event that it was an accident, I would urge you to please make sure you do not leave anti-freeze out where it can be accessed by pets and especially children.

“I would hope that people who do not like cats would look at more humane ways of deterring them from entering their gardens. To deliberately put a sweet innocent little creature such as Tilly through such an agonising and painful death is just awful to contemplate.”

Marian said Tilly was “the sweetest thing” who would wait for her return from work. She says Tilly and her brother Tommy were particularly special as they were rescued a year ago.

Marian said: “Tilly was rescued from a bad start and she hasn’t had a chance.”

She said Tilly had been out of the house on Monday, however, by the evening, she started staggering around the house, having fits and being sick.

Marian said: “I thought she had been hit by a car, she was shaking and she was staggering along the floor. I stayed up with her until 2am in the morning to check on her.”

Marian took her to the vets on Tuesday morning where blood tests revealed she had been poisoned with ethylene glycol. This is a chemical used in anti-freeze, de-icer, and screen-wash. It is apparently sweet tasting which cats like the taste of.

First published at 12:00, Thursday, 12 April 2012
Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk