Cat owners in Glenrothes are being warned someone may be deliberately poisoning pets.
One distraught owner has watched both her cats die, only one day apart.
The Scottish SPCA is now appealing for information and warning pet owners to be vigilant after the suspicious deaths of two cats from the same household in Glenrothes.
Scotland’s animal welfare charity was alerted by Kingdom Vets after a client from Laverock Terrace sadly lost both cats on April 5 and 6.
A post-mortem examination of one of the cats confirmed it had died as a result of antifreeze poisoning.
Senior Inspector Steven Gray said: “The post-mortem revealed the cat had recently eaten meat and biscuits.
“However, the owner confirmed she did not feed her cats meat so we suspect someone has cruelly laced the food with antifreeze.
“The owner did not wish for a post-mortem to be carried out on the second cat.
“However, as he was fit and healthy up until he died, and given the time frame, this death is also being treated as suspicious.”
Mr Gray added that antifreeze was one of the most common causes of cat poisoning.
If ingested, it causes a huge amount of suffering and, in the majority of cases, a slow and painful death.
Symptoms include vomiting, lethargy, with cats sometimes appearing disorientated and off balance, and in the latter stages head shaking and coma.
By the time symptoms appear it is often too late for vet treatment to be effective.
“Sadly the poisoning of cats in Scotland is widespread and in our experience there are people out there who wish to cause harm and death to defenceless pets.
“We would urge cat owners in the area to be vigilant and report anything suspicious,” he said.
If anyone has information they should contact the Scottish SPCA’s animal helpline on 03000 999 999.
