THE RSPCA is warning pet owners not to ‘decorate’ their animals with accessories or jewellery after a cat had to have a bangle cut from her neck.
The warning comes after an inspector came across a young cat in Shirley with a metal bangle stuck around her neck.
Inspector Herchy Boal attended a home in February on another matter when she happened across black and white 11-month-old cat CC.
Inspector Boal said: “The owner admitted to me that he’d put the metal bangle around her neck when she was a kitten as he thought it was pretty.
“But, as CC grew and her head got bigger, it became clear that the brass bangle could no longer be removed.”
CC was taken to the RSPCA’s Newbrook Farm Animal Hospital, in Birmingham, where vets cut the bangle off.
Inspector Boal said: “As CC continued to grow, the bangle would have cut into her flesh and become very, very sore.
“I spoke to CC’s owner and he soon realised what a silly thing it was to do and was very apologetic for the error in judgement.
RSPCA cat welfare expert Alice Potter said the charity see cats with injuries caused by dangerous collars which is why it advises against using those that aren’t quick-release, or leaving flea collars on your pets.
She added: “Cats are natural hunters and curious explorers that enjoy climbing trees or pushing through tight spots and for these reasons it is imperative that any collar is designed to free should they become snagged during their adventures.
“If the collar gets caught on something the cat may try to free itself by using its foot and then, in turn, gets its leg stuck with the collar ending up under the cat’s armpit causing painful injury.
“Poor CC could have ended up with an awful injury thanks to this metal bangle or, in the worse case scenario, could even have been killed if she’d have got it caught on something.”
CC was neutered and microchipped by the RSPCA before being returned to her owner.
