Barrie police are investigating after two cats were shot with a pellet gun.
Street Cats Animal Rescue in Barrie has named her Sweet Pea. She’s a stray cat who is recovering at the shelter after undergoing surgery to remove two pellets from the back of her neck.
"It’s always upsetting when you hear something like this,” says Carol Snow of Street Cats Animal Rescue. “She's a young cat, someone's shot her twice with a pellet gun, probably for the fun of it."
Sweet Pea was found just off of Grove Street in Barrie's east end on Wednesday and was taken to the Barrie Veterinary Hospital.
"We x-rayed her and found two pellets. The one that you could see originally on the photo, you can see it's pushing out through the skin, and this one's deeper," says Dr. Pauline Van Veen.
Van Veen operated on the cat for an hour, and spayed her at the same time.
"The second pellet was a little harder to find because the muscles had started to close in. The way I found the pellet was really by following a trail of hair and plugs of skin from the surface that the pellet had pushed down an inch or so into the muscles."
After years of operating on small animals, Van Veen admits cases like this are tough.
"Fortunately, I'm able to save this cat, but who's out there, and what are they going to do next? That’s what’s going through my head."
A second cat was shot around the Hickling Trail area in Barrie's east end. The feline was taken to the Animal Hospital of East Barrie and is recovering well.
With two cases in the last week, Barrie police are now investigating these incidents.
"If anyone's charged with cruelty to animals, they can be facing up to a $10,000 fine and a maximum of five years imprisonment," says Const. Sarah Bamford.
Criminal charges can also be laid if someone is caught using a pellet gun incorrectly. Police believe there may be more cases and anyone with information should come forward.
As for Sweet Pea, there's already been an application to adopt her.
Veterinarians are urging pet owners to keep their cats indoors and if you do take them outside to put them on a leash and watch them closely.
