Animal Welfare: British Cats Fall Victim to Air Guns

Across the Channel, 4 out of 10 veterinarians have treated cats with serious, sometimes life-threatening injuries caused by air guns in the past year, according to a survey conducted by the British Veterinary Association (BVA). From February 4 to 8, 2015, 324 veterinarians specializing in pets responded to the BVA survey. Forty-one percent had, in fact, seen cats in their clinics with injuries caused by an air gun, and 1 percent had seen injuries caused by a crossbow, over the past twelve months. In their comments, many practitioners expressed concern about an increase in these cases, which involve serious injuries such as fractured limbs requiring amputation or eye injuries leading to enucleation. Some cats, shot at point-blank range, do not survive their injuries. Several veterinarians have noted a spike in cases during school breaks, suggesting that the perpetrators of these shootings are young. In fact, the majority of injuries are caused by low-powered air guns fired at close range. As a result, they are also used by children looking for a target to shoot at. And in this trendy game, cats are the primary victims. The organization Cats Protection is calling for stricter regulations and enhanced control measures to hold air gun owners in the United Kingdom accountable. If they fall into the wrong hands and are left unsupervised, they can maim any animal that comes within range—or even a person. There needs to be greater awareness of the severity of the injuries these weapons inflict. Nearly five cats are killed or injured each week across the Channel by such weapons—a figure that is likely underestimated , according to Cats Protection , which helps some 194,000 cats each year through its national network of more than 250 shelters and 31 adoption centers.