Cats shot with BB guns

The gunshot maiming of two pet cats in Masterton this week has sparked condemnation from a vet treating the animals.
Heidi Ward-McGrath said a 16-year-old boy with a slug rifle on Monday shot a cat named Ginger point blank through the eye while the animal was cowering under its owner's house.
She said the damaged eye was surgically removed although she decided to leave the slug lodged in the cat's brain along with shrapnel from the missile.
Ginger has now returned home, she said, and "neurologically" was showing no symptoms although there is a risk of lead leaching from the pellet and eventual poisoning.
"The owner is an old man who, through no fault of his own, now has a bill he's paying off at five dollars a week. He doesn't want to take the matter any further with the authorities and that's his call to make, not mine.
"But I really want to talk to the boy. What was he doing in town with a slug rifle anyway, and where's the monitoring and accountability? I want him to know it wasn't just the cat he hurt and we have a heap of windows he could be cleaning to help pay off the debt."
Mrs Ward-McGrath said another cat, Lucky, fell victim to an air rifle shooting at a rural property on the outskirts of the town on Thursday. She said the identity of the person who pulled the trigger is unknown
Lucky, who like Ginger is a healthy five to seven year old tomcat, was left with broken bones in his hind leg and shrapnel scattered through the soft tissue of the limb.
"The slug just blew Lucky's leg apart and two bones were absolutely shattered. And this is a much-loved family cat. It's just horrendous."
She said there is a high risk of infection with Lucky and he is likely to remain
Mrs Ward-McGrath said her service usually treats four shot animals each year although most firearms injuries are found "incidentally" when pets are brought in on another unrelated matter.
"There are a lot of pets brought in for something else and we find the slugs. One dog was brought in and he had several slugs lodged a hind leg."
Mrs Ward-McGrath said the shootings are difficult to understand and deserve only the strongest condemnation.
"These are people's pets. Again, it's not just the animals that are hurt when this happens. Lucky lives with four young children and for their mother and them, this is really hard to deal with and it's not over yet."
BLOB In New Zealand any member of the public over the age of 18 may own and fire an air rifle without a firearms license, provided they use the air rifle in a safe environment with a responsible attitude.
Minors over the age of 16 but under the age of 18 require a written test regarding safe firearm use before being able to purchase an air rifle, however they may use an air rifle with adult supervision without this license.