'My kitten was shot in the face'

16 hours ago

Sarah-May Buccieriin Lincoln

News image — Kelly Burns with her seven-month-old kitten, Poppy

BBC Kelly Burns is sat on a bed with a black cat. Kelly is wearing a blue and white striped dress. She has medium-length ginger hair. She is holding the black cat's face with her left hand. — Kelly Burns with her seven-month-old kitten, Poppy

A woman says she felt "rage and sorrow" after her kitten was shot in the face with what is believed to be an air rifle pellet.

Kelly Burns, 43, from Lincoln, said she found the cat injured in her garden on 16 June, its face "covered in blood", but it was not until she paid for an X-ray that the pellet was found lodged in the jaw.

"To shoot a kitten in the face is just not normal behaviour of a normal human being with empathy – it's somebody who needs help," she said.

A spokesperson for Lincolnshire Police said officers had reviewed lines of inquiry, "but so far our investigation has not revealed a suspect".

The Veterinary Hospital, Lincoln An X-ray of a cat's skull. A white ball shaped object towards the back of the cat's jaw is illuminated by the scan. — Burns says a vet pointed out the pellet, believed to be a air rifle wound

Burns said she initially thought the seven-month-old kitten, Poppy, had been fighting with another one of her cats.

However, the X-ray painted a different picture.

"They [the vet] said, 'there's a bullet in her head'. And I said, 'what?'"

"I screamed and I went through a stage of just rage and anger and then just sobbing."

Burns said she intended to spend about £4,500 to have the pellet surgically removed from Poppy's jaw.

The police spokesperson said: "This is clearly a distressing incident for the owner.

"Thankfully no other similar incidents have been reported."

Poppy the black cat has green eyes and is being held by her owner. She has one paw on top of her owner's hand. — Poppy survived the incident but the pellet remains in her jaw

A person must be 18 or older to buy air weapons and ammunition In England and Wales.

It is an offence to have an air weapon in a public place without a reasonable excuse, or to fire one "beyond the boundaries of any premises".

It is also an offence to knowingly cause a pet to suffer unnecessarily.

Burns said she felt angry about the incident.

"Who the hell shoots kittens with a gun?"

"You've got something wrong with you if you have to shoot an innocent animal."

A spokesperson for the RSPCA said the charity received an "alarming number of calls" to investigate air gun shootings every year, with cats and wildlife most often affected.

The charity called for "stricter regulations" for air weapons.

"It's still too easy for people to get their hands on an air gun, without the necessary basic safety training, or an understanding of the impact these weapons pose," the spokesperson added.

In December, Lincolnshire Police warned wildlife was being targeted with high-powered catapults firing ball bearings.

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