Search for mystery attacker who's been snatching and shaving cats

A bizarre series of attacks is being carried out on cats in Southport, Merseyside, with pets being grabbed off the streets and their fur forcibly shaved. Now concerned owners are worried that animals may be seriously injured by the mystery attacker. There have been recent reports of several cats falling victim to the assault, with many being given haircuts. One owner's long-haired Maine Coon cat was forcibly trimmed by a stranger.



Another owner who didn't want the animal or herself identified over fear of future attacks said that her young tortoiseshell cat had also been  shaved. She added: “When she came back her neck was shaved, all her back legs, around her genitals, her bottom and all the way up her stomach to her front legs. It was the fact that it was around her genitals that made me feel sick – it must have been really uncomfortable for her.

“There was also a graze on her side, it looked like it had to have been done by an electric razor – there was no way that could have been done by scraping herself. She was shaken up and funny around us for a few days after – normally she goes up to anyone, she is so soft. I could not believe it when I first saw her, I took her to the vets and they said she was fine. But I was just disgusted. It is an awful thing to do to an animal – if this person can do that to a cat it makes you think what else they are capable of.”



The owner said that she reported the attack to both the police and the RSPCA and that she has heard of other similar incidents in the area. She added: “I want to know why someone would do it, there is no reason why they would do that. Someone must have held her down to shave her stomach – it would have been difficult for one person to shave her, there might have been more than one person, but I don’t know for sure. She was a bit of a mess at first, but her fur has been growing back slowly.” Merseyside Police confirmed a report was received from a member of the public, who said that their cat had been shaved.