Northampton man 'heartbroken' after cat dies and other in urgent care after eating suspected rat poison

Multiple pets have been brought into a Northampton veterinary hospital after consuming suspected rat and slug poison.

Spinney Lodge Veterinary Hospital issued a warning on its Facebook page to the public after several pets were recently brought in showing symptoms of toxic exposure - particularly pets in the area of Moulton Leys.

The post said: "Could we please ask the public to be vigilant of any pest control they may be using in and around the garden and ensure that these are pet-friendly.

"We are hoping that all incidences have been accidental however we are keeping a record of these cases to inform the local authorities.

"If your pet is suffering from incoordination, imbalance, tremors, seizures, bruising or bleeding please let your vet know ASAP. Unfortunately, toxin ingestion can be fatal."

Sadly for one pet owner, the warning came too late.

Kiyoshi Benjamin-Moutrie, 32, of Cottingham Drive was the owner of two cats under the age of two - a black cat called Forest and a grey cat called Kobe.

Forest ventured out for a morning walk three weeks ago and Kiyoshi called him back in before leaving the house for a couple of hours.

Kiyoshi said: "When I returned, Forest had lost all ability to walk, had become incontinent and didn’t seem aware of his surroundings. I picked him up and he looked right through me as though he wasn’t aware I was there."

He took Forest to the vets at around 4.20pm and the feline passed away at 7pm that same day.

Kiyoshi's other cat, Kobe, left the house for about one hour on Saturday, January 29 before returning. Kobe, after sitting with his owner for 20 minutes, began to display unsettlingly similar symptoms to those of his deceased brother's.

Kiyoshi, recalling the ordeal, said: "He fell off the sofa and didn’t have his balance. His face had also begun twitching. As soon as I saw the symptoms I feared the same thing and got him straight to the vets."

Kobe spent three nights at Spinney Lodge Veterinary Hospital but has recovered over the last 24 hours and is ready to come home today (Tuesday, February 1).

The veterinary clinic shared an image of the pellets extracted from Kobe's stomach on its Facebook page.

Kiyoshi added: "It was horrible. I’ve had both since kittens and they came from a close friend's cat, which means I was able to be around them from the day they were born.

"Forest was born with swimmer's syndrome, which meant that - at two weeks old - my friend and I had to strap his legs up so they would grow correctly and essentially had to teach him to walk ourselves. For him to overcome that just to be poisoned is heartbreaking."