Three cats die amid claims of poisoning in Horncastle

Devastated owners have revealed at least three cats have died amid claims they were poisoned by anti-freeze in the Tennyson Gardens area of Horncastle.
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The Smith family believe their cats Lilo and Stitch were both poisoned.

Another resident, Beckie Rennocks, says her cat was put down after showing similar symptoms.

Lincolnshire Police have confirmed they are investigating the incidents.

However, two of the town’s vets say that while they were aware of the incidents they could not confirm anti-freeze was responsible.

Chris Smith said one of the family’s cats was put down on September 19, and the second on October 1.

He said: “The cats started being sick, and then both had poor balance on their back legs.

“It is really upsetting. My daughters are absolutely devastated.

“We had them from kittens - the cats were a part of the family.

“I want to raise awareness of what is happening and catch whoever is doing it. It is wrong.”

Ms Rennocks said: “I would like to warn people to keep there cats in, and any signs of sickness they should go straight to the vet’s.

Ms Rennocks says her vet bills came to almost £400 and she suspects anti-freeze poisoning was responsible.

A Lincolnshire Police spokesman said: “It was reported that two cats had been poisoned. The call came from Tennyson Gardens, Horncastle.

“An appointment was made for a visit with one of our PCSOs and enquiries are underway.”

A spokesman from Vet on the Corner said: “The first thing to say is that there has not been a confirmed case of anti-freeze (ethylene glycol) poisoning in cats in Horncastle.

“A vet has surmised that it could be a possible cause for his client’s cat becoming so ill. We have seen two similar cases in the same area. Unfortunately, all cases were fatal.

“The problem with ethylene glycol is that it is very toxic even if ingested in small amounts, and will start making the cat ill within 30 minutes and it is invariably fatal unless treated promptly.

“Anyone with a poorly cat, usually with vomiting and unsteadiness, should contact their local emergency veterinary centre to get advice as soon as possible.”

A spokesman from Medivet The Vet said: “We haven’t had any confirmed cases at our hospital, although we saw two patients recently that may have been poisoned.

“To confirm the diagnosis, we would have to test the urine and/or send the body away for post mortem examination. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do either of these tests in these two cases.

“There were numerous other possible causes for these two patients illness and death, and antifreeze is only one of the possibilities.”