A young cat was tossed from a moving van on Papamoa Beach Rd yesterday, a Papamoa resident said.
Kathy Maxwell said she was driving along the road between Parton Rd and Domain Rd about 10am when a van slowed in front of her and she saw the ginger and white cat
tossed from the passenger window.
"I just couldn't believe my eyes. It was a shockingly awful thing to do and really upset me. There was no need for this. If the owner didn't want it why didn't they take to the SPCA instead?
"The poor little cat was obviously hurt when it ran off down a driveway after it had tumbled and tumbled for ages on the road."
Mrs Maxwell said she and work colleagues she was travelling with followed the suspect vehicle but lost sight of it at Gravatt Rd.
When Mrs Maxwell and her husband went back to look for the cat they couldn't find it.
Mrs Maxwell, who noted down the registration number of the vehicle, has handed the details to the SPCA.
Incensed Tauranga SPCA manager John Esdaile said once he found out the vehicle owner's details that person could expect a visit from an SPCA inspector.
"This was at the extreme end of animal cruelty and the person responsible can expect to face prosecution action," he said.
Mr Esdaile said that the SPCA fielded reports of people leaving their animals on roads two to three times a week, but actually tossing animals from vehicles was fortunately not a common practice.
