A mum and her three young children are heartbroken after their three cats all died after being poisoned within the span of just 18 months.
Victoria Vincent, 37, and her family have had to come to terms with the losses of their pets and want to warn other residents in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire of the ordeal.
The mum says her children, one of whom saw the final cat fall ill, are devastated and they don't want their new cat, Tommy, to go outside in fear of another poisoning.
Speaking to Grimsby Live, Victoria said: "It's unfair that little Tommy can't go outside, but the whole thing has just made us so worried.
"I'd hate for this to happen to others in the area.
"It's been really hard on me and my husband having to comfort the kids and the children have hated not having a cat. Recently, we've posted letters through people's doors to make them aware of the situation and even reported it to the police as I think it may be someone doing it on purpose."
Humberside Police have also reminded residents in the seaside town to remain vigilant.
Victoria has had a pendant made of Arlo’s hair as a keepsake for her daughter.
The family's first cat, five-year-old Bella, was rushed to the vets in around March 2021 after falling ill.
Victoria said: "After running some tests, they told us she had poison in her blood and that they'd hoped to flush it out, but it didn't work.
"They rang us at 11pm that day and told us she'd been having seizures and was going to have to be put to sleep."
The next incident would not occur for some time later, with their next cat Arlo, 1, falling ill only four weeks ago.
Victoria said: "He'd just started venturing outside and liked winding up the different dogs in the area.
"Sadly, he went missing for a few days and we had no idea where he went. We were out shouting for him everyday but he never came back. We got a knock on the door a few days later from the neighbour saying they'd found him unresponsive and taken him to the Blue Cross Hospital.
"Within four hours of him being there though, he also passed away."
The family got the children another pet to help fill the void left by the loss of Arlo. However, the same fate would befall Nala only a month later after she fell ill on Wednesday, 14 September.
Victoria said: "She came in the front garden and there was a pile of vomit next to her. At first I didn't think anything of it, but when she laid in my arms, I could tell there was obviously something else.
"I stood her up to see if she could walk, but after taking two steps she fell over straight away. After seeing the same thing with Arlo and Bella, I thought it was going to be a similar issue.
"We took her straight to the vets, but she was put to sleep straight away, but unfortunately there was no bringing her back."
Humberside Police said: "Officers are investigating after we received reports that three cats could potentially have died from suspected poisoning in the Elliston Street area of Cleethorpes over the past 18 months. We are therefore asking cat owners in the area to be vigilant. It is not known how the cats came into contact with the poison, or the type of poison encountered.
"It only takes a small amount of substances to cause serious and sometimes fatal consequences to small animals. Further information about the symptoms and possible causes poisoning can be found via the following link to the RSPCA."
