Salem was left with severe burns (Picture: SWNS)

A man killed his kitten when he thought it would be funny to ‘get him stoned’.

Robert White, 34, had friends around when they inflicted the horrific injuries on his black and white cat Salem.

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They tried to get the animal high by giving it ‘blow backs’ (inhaling cannabis smoke into its mouth) and stubbing out joints on its face as they sat around laughing in the flat in Erdington, a suburb in northeast Birmingham.

But White’s partner didn’t see the funny side when she had to take the poor animal to the vet the next morning, with burns so severe it had lost most of the fur on its face.




Rafe Turner, prosecuting, said: ‘It was in a collapsed and cold state and smelt of dirty water. He had dried candle wax on his nose and head and what looked like burns on his face.’

Rogerfield Road in Birmingham (Picture: Google)

He was in great pain (Picture: SWNS)

Third degree burns covered 70 to 80% of Salem’s head, and he also had blisters on his paws.

In the end, the injuries were so severe that he had to be put down as he was suffering so badly.

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White, 34, claimed it was one of his friends who had actually ‘singed’ the cat while ‘messing about’.

He admitted a charge of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal, but was allowed to walk free from court, getting away without a prison sentence after the court heard he was addicted to amphetamine and had OCD.

Magistrates banned him indefinitely from keeping animals, ordered him to £350 costs and a £115 victim surcharge.

Speaking after the hearing, RSPCA inspector Beth Boyd said: ‘It was just horrific. It is one of the worse cases I have had to investigate.

‘I can not even think about what Salem must have gone through that night. At least some justice has been done for him.’