Cats Protection has condemned the actions of an individual who placed their cats inside two polythene-wrapped cat carriers and dumped them near a reservoir.

The two cats, a six-year-old tortie and white and a 14-year-old ginger tom, were found semi-comatose and emaciated by a dog walker at the Cove Reservoir in Inverclyde last week.

Cats Protection was contacted, and volunteers from the charity’s Inverclyde branch rushed both cats to the vet, where the ginger tom sadly had to be put to sleep.

Against the odds, the tortie and white pulled through, and she has been named Hope by the cat charity which is looking after her.

Mary Miller, co-ordinator of Cats Protection’s Inverclyde branch said: “This is the most upsetting incident of abandonment that I have seen in my time working in cat welfare. These cats were consigned to a death sentence and whoever did this has a callous disregard for animals. The vet estimated that the two cats could have been trapped inside these carriers for up to a week, so their pain and suffering just doesn't bear thinking about. Even if this is the action of an owner who no longer wanted to look after them, there is really no excuse to treat cats in this manner.”

Despite her ordeal Hope is doing well and the branch hopes to find her a home soon.
 
“Hope has been reduced to a bag of bones by the experience and it will take some weeks to feed her up and help her to trust humans again. She is very skittish but affectionate and she will be a loving pet for a lucky owner in the future.”

The charity urges anyone with information relating to this incident to please call Greenock Police Office on 01475 492 500.

If you live in the Inverclyde area and would like to adopt Hope, then please call Cats Protection’s national Helpline on 03000 12 12 12

Cats Protection’s Inverclyde branch is part of the charity’s national network of 260 volunteer-run branches and 30 adoption centres that together help over 235,000 unwanted cats each year.

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For media enquiries, please contact the Media Office on 01825 741 911 or email media.office@cats.org.uk

Notes to editors

1. Cats Protection’s vision is a world where every cat is treated with kindness and an understanding of its needs.
2. Cats Protection’s registered charity number is 203644 (England and Wales) and SC037711 (Scotland). Founded as the Cats Protection League in 1927, the charity adopted the name Cats Protection in 1998.  We ask that you use the name Cats Protection when referring to the charity in all published material.