A devastated family have spoken of their horror after their beloved pet was found 'sadistically butchered' by an unknown attacker.
Bella, a three-year-old Persian cat, had been missing from their home in Ballynoe, near Castlelyons, Republic of Ireland since the end of August after she vanished during a family barbecue, reports Cork Live.
After posting appeals online for her safe return, Finola O'Callaghan and her husband David received a deeply upsetting call several days later revealing that their cat had been "barbarically" killed and tied up around six miles from home.
Bella was found hanging from a metal bar at the entrance to the woods at Glentrasna South in what Finola described as a "horrific, sadistic and brutal butchering."
Sharing her outrage at how her cat had been slaughtered, Finola told Cork Live: "The way she was hung up it was menacing, threatening, where she was was in a very public place. The road is quiet but to tie her to the entrance to the woods, it was deliberate, it felt targeted.
"It was just so distressing, I went down to identify her body, and I will forever be left with that image, I will never get it out of my head.
"I haven't slept since this happened, I feel like I can't let my other cats see the light of day with someone who is capable of doing this to a totally innocent animal living within our community."
She has since shared the sad news of the incident with friends and family on social media, with one user leaving a comment suggesting that she may have been hung up by a road user trying to alert others to her passing.
But Finola is not reassured by this explanation, as she believes anyone who has seen the "totally disrespectful manner" in which Bella was displayed "would be under no illusion" that it was a "random accident".
She has now urged the Gardaí and community to work together to catch the suspected cat killer, warning that "this psychopath will strike again" unless something is done.
Finola has asked that anyone who saw an individual acting suspiciously or has dashcam footage from between the Ardglass Cross area and Clonmult to speak with Fermoy Gardai, who have launched an investigation.
