Horror for Oakwood man after his 'abnormally cute' cat is shot in the face with an air rifle

Linden Wrigglesworth said he has had to take time off work due to stress after his three-year-old cat Gracie was shot in the Oakwood area on Sunday evening (October 16).

He said that his “abnormally cute” black and white cat stumbled into his home on Grange Park Road at around 7.15pm covered in blood and with a wound just above her nostril.

Mr Wrigglesworth said: “I was in the kitchen and saw this little white thing shuffling over the garden.

"Her legs were completely covered in blood and she was crying and shaking.

"She got to her cat bed and I thought she must’ve been attacked by another cat but then I saw a perfectly circular hole above her nostril.”

He rushed her to an emergency vets in Birstall where she was operated on. The vets were able to remove a pellet believed to be from either a air rifle or ball bearing gun and said that if it had any deeper there was a high chance Gracie would have died.

Mr Wrigglesworth said: “They have had to cut through the top of her nose to recover this pellet.

"They said that they can leave pellets in in some situations but in this case they couldn’t because it could’ve infected her brain.”

He has since learnt that the bill to care for Gracie will be “about £5,000”.

Mr Wrigglesworth said: “It’s really done our heads in.

"We are fortunate but God forbid if someone didn’t have insurance.

"I suffer with anxiety and it’s really knocked me back.”

Gracie was able to return home on Friday afternoon and Mr Wrigglesworth has said he hopes to urge people to be more sympathetic to cats when they’re in their garden.

He said: “A cat or a dog is part of the family so if you see one in your garden why don’t you knock on the window or squirt some water on them if you don’t want them to be there.

"In this case some freak has probably planned to do it.

"It’s probably just some kids but it has caused real trauma for her and for us.”

He has also reported the incident to the police and thanked the vets for their “wonderful” help.

“This whole situation has been horrible”, Mr Wrigglesworth said. “But the teams at Vets 4 Pets and Paragon in Wakefield have been really great and understanding.”

He also reported the incident to West Yorkshire Police who have issued an appeal, saying: “At 5.20pm on Monday police received a report of a cat having returned home to Grange Park Road, Oakwood, at about 7.15pm on Sunday and was found to have been shot in the head with a ball bearing.

“The cat was treated at the vets and the ball bearing removed. It was not known where the incident had occurred.

“A crime has been recorded. Anyone who has any information that could assist in identifying the person responsible is asked to contact officers via 101 quoting crime reference 13220578204 or online at www.westyorkshire.police.uk/101livechat.”