PARENTS and pet owners have been warned to be on alert after a cat was caught by a steel trap.
Lucky was found mewing in pain by elderly residents of a care home. He was found dragging the large metal trap on his front right paw, trying to jump through a window.
A vet operated to remove the trap to save Lucky’s paw.
Lucky’s owners – Sue and Craig Elsdon – were devastated.
Mrs Elsdon, of Osprey Drive, Hayling, said: “When I saw him with that big, vicious trap on his foot I just cried and cried.
“It is so irresponsible to set that sort of trap in a built-up area. These are made to break the backs of vermin, and this one is big enough for a child to get its foot stuck in.”
It is not known where Lucky got caught in the trap was and his owners fear there may be more waiting to snare innocent pets.
The 40-year-old health worker, who is a member of Community Responders, added: “My three children were all very, very upset.
“If the kind people at Wimborne Care Home hadn’t taken Lucky to the vet’s it could have been a very different story. He could have lost his foot or even died.”
Lucky still has a slight limp and will have a close eye kept on his paw in case the circulation stops – which could be a life-threatening problem for the rest of the six-year-old cat’s life.
Jo Barr from the RSPCA said although the traps are dangerous to pets they are not illegal.
She said: “If this trap was in a public place then there is a responsibility on the person who set it to ensure that only the targeted species is caught – they have a duty of care. But if it is on private land, such as a private garden, then it is legal.”
Source: Hayling Islander
