'It could be a child next time' - family's shock after cat shot with air gun in cruel Barton Seagrave attack

A Barton Seagrave mum says her daughter was left distraught after their pet cat was shot with an air gun.

Police are investigating the cruel attack which left three-year-old Theo needing surgery and the Blissett family with a vet bill of almost £5,000.

Sarah Blissett, who lives in Poplar’s Farm Road, said Theo didn’t come home on August 16 and arrived back limping the following day.

When he was taken to the vet Mrs Blissett was horrified when she was told he had a pellet in a limb and had been shot.

The incident left her daughter Daisy, who got Theo during the Covid lockdown, devastated. And Sarah said she has since spoken to another woman on the nearby Hanwood Park estate whose cat was also shot a week later.

She said: "We want to make people aware this is happening.

"It could be a child next time."

Theo had an operation to have the pellet removed and is now recovering at home. He is not allowed outside for three months.

The Blissett family had pet insurance for up to £2,000, leaving them with almost £3,000 still to cover, and a fundraising page was set up after the attack.

A Northamptonshire Police spokesman said no arrests have been made in connection with the incident and urged anyone with information to call 101, quoting reference number 23000529080.

The attack has left Sarah questioning how someone could commit such a callous act.

She said: "I do not think they are human really."