Mystery cat deaths at Middleton-in-Teesdale spark fears of pet poisoning

ANGRY: Alan Savage with his pet cat, Max 

THE sudden death of two cats has led residents to fear for their pets’ safety – with suggestions being made that someone could be poisoning them on purpose.
A warning notice has been posted through people’s doors in Middleton-in-Teesdale, stating: “Guard your pets! Two pets poisoned in Dale View. Don’t let this scum kill yours.”
Alan Savage, who lives in the street, has echoed the call for neighbours to guard their pets after finding his 10-year-old male cat, Spyro, dead behind a bush outside his home last Wednesday morning (October 5).
Mr Savage said: “One of the neighbours told us they’d found a cat and thought it might be ours. They said it had been sick and was frothing at the mouth. When they described it I thought that has not been an accident.”
This cat, named Dipstick, actually belonged to Mr Savage’s neighbours, Clare and Michael Gibson.
Mr Gibson said: “We got a knock on the door at about 8.30am. It must have happened through the night. It has left us feeling really annoyed.”
Mrs Gibson added: “We don’t know if something has been put down intentionally though. You just don’t expect things like this to happen.”
After hearing what had happened, Mr Savage and his wife Jill became increasingly concerned for the whereabouts of Spyro. Mr Savage said: “I was a bit worried because we had not seen Spyro all morning and he is usually a home bird.
“When we went out the front we found him behind the bush just along the street. He had also been sick and had froth round his mouth. I think it is poisoning. There were no injuries from a car and he had not been shot. We are very upset and annoyed. We have been here now for just over two years and never had anything like this happen before.”
The couple also have another cat, called Max, and they are now scared to let it outdoors. He said: “We are worried. We are keeping Max inside much to his dislike. It seems someone has taken a dislike to cats.
“I have a feeling someone has put something down deliberately. People can put rat poison down but it has to be done properly. Don’t put poison down in an open container. The other thing we worry about is children.”
Because the pets were not taken to vets it cannot be proved they were poisoned, but Mr Savage believes the state in which they were discovered showed signs of this.
Mr Savage said: “I can’t prove that he has been poisoned but that is what I think it is. It is indicative. People who I have spoken to are quite shocked. It leaves a taste in your mouth about the community. We don’t want this to happen to anyone else. If it was aimed at my pet I imagine that will be the end of it but if it is put down because someone does not like cats then there could be more.”
Hoping to get the message across to those responsible, Mr Savage added: “Think about what you are doing and think about the risks it has for other people’s pets and children. I think it is also bad for your own soul. It comes back to us in the end.”