Cat's barbaric ordeal horrifies SPCA

A cat has lost its leg after being caught for days in an illegal gin-trap in suburban Tauranga in a case the SPCA describes as "barbaric".
Sebastian the ginger cat was found in Greerton with maggot-infested wounds to its front left limb after being mangled by the trap.
The ordeal comes as the SPCA releases its annual List of Shame, which also includes the shooting of TJ the ginger cat in Otumoetai last month.
SPCA education officer Nicolle Smith today revealed Sebastian was found under a resident's house in the Coopers Ave area last week. The trap was still attached to the cat but the chain had been cut. "We do not know whether this chain was cut before the cat was caught or after the cat was caught," she said.
"By the state of the wound, Sebastian had been caught in this trap for days."
Vets were forced to amputate the leg in an emergency operation.
"Due to the huge level of infection he nearly didn't make it. But he is gorgeous and, in spite of his terrifying ordeal, very friendly and is doing well just three days later," Ms Smith said.
She said it was "barbaric and horrific" that someone could have found Sebastian caught in their trap and simply cut the chain.
"You suspect it was a case of 'out of sight, out of mind'."
Sebastian was being placed in foster care and would likely be available for adoption within two weeks.
Ms Smith estimated the cost of surgery and ongoing medical checkups would total more than $1000, and appealed to the public for donations.
The case follows that of TJ, whose shooting shocked Bay of Plenty Times readers in September and has been cited as one of the worst cases of animal abuse in the country of the past year. The cat, who belongs to the Poultney family, had to have his leg amputated after being shot at close range with a slug gun or BB gun.
Lyn Poultney said TJ's inclusion on the SPCA annual List of Shame emphasised the horrifying nature of the attack. The offender has never been caught. "Everyone I've spoken to in the neighbourhood is disgusted and up in arms that someone could do that to one of our pets," she said. "He's not too bad. His fur's starting to grow back now, so he doesn't look so weird."
A second Tauranga incident also made the national list of 45 cruelty cases.
In May, the owner of a female dog left the animal for up to three months before seeking treatment after the animal was hit by a car.
The incident left the dog with a badly dislocated hind leg. The owner is being prosecuted by the SPCA and the case is currently before the court.
Among the worst cases on the list were a Gisborne man who fed five live kittens to his dog, a Pukekohe man who tore the head off a kitten in front of his family, and a Southland dog found burnt, bloodied and peeling allegedly from being doused in solvent.
Other horrors included a Red Bill Gull tortured in a Dunedin supermarket trolley, a Whangarei cat scorched with boiling water, a rabbit swung by its ears in central Auckland and twelve pregnant ewes killed and others badly wounded when vandals drove a vehicle round a South Canterbury farm paddock.
Royal New Zealand SPCA's National Chief Executive, Robyn Kippenberger said the list was a reminder of the challenges faced in reducing and eliminating abuse of animals. "Unfortunately, once again, young people figure prominently amongst those committing some of the most horrendous acts against animals. The most disturbing aspect of this youth behaviour is that we know there is a link between cruelty to animals and violence and abuse towards other humans."
Youth offences on the list included a Dunedin primary school student caught torturing his neighbour's hens, an Alexandra 18-year-old found shooting a 'BB' gun at his dog, a Christchurch youth who committed bestiality with a donkey, two Kaikoura youths who bludgeoned seals to death and four South Auckland boys who repeatedly kicked and punched a puppy and threw it through a basketball hoop.
The SPCA was working to break this cycle through its One of the Family education programme in intermediate schools.
The List of Shame contains several cases of serious neglect, such those of the 40 sheep, goats, lambs and kids discovered in a poor condition on a Central North Island farm, and the guinea pig from the Nelson area who died from suspected pneumonia and starvation, after being left out in a cage without food, shelter or water.
The SPCA's Annual Appeal Week takes place this year between November 6 and Friday 12th November. To make a $30 donation please telephone 0900 97772.