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A family cat was put down by a vet at a Pets At Home shop in Co Antrim without the owner’s permission or knowledge in the mistaken belief that the sick cat was a stray, Belfast Live can reveal.

Julie Neeson and her daughters Tia, 13, and Kiana, 10, spent much of Sunday the night searching for their pet, Babies, a tabby cat.

Mrs Neeson who is partially disabled, had let him out but when she called him back he had vanished.

The Newtownabbey mum said: “Our neighbours knew Babies and they spoiled him as much as we did. Sometimes they allowed him to sleep in their house and he would come back to us in the morning.

“We called for him until 2am on Monday and then thinking he had been taken in for a cuddle, we went to bed fully expecting to seeing him the next day.”

But following information given to Mrs Neeson, the police were contacted and it was established the cat had been picked up by a new neighbour who had taken him to the Pets At Home shop at 5.10pm on Monday evening.

Mrs Neeson said: “At 5.30pm Babies was dead by lethal injection given to him by the Vets4Pets surgeon who works through the shop.

“When I got there handed my cat to me and he was frozen. He had been kept in the freezer over night. He was frozen stiff and waiting to be disposed of. I couldn’t believe it.

“I demanded to see the vet and asked him what he had killed our cat for. He told me the cat was obviously a young cat that had had a hard life, and because it had smelly breath, that he knew it was sick and he put it down after examining his belly.

“I asked him what blood tests he had done to establish his health and he told me he had done no blood tests.

“The collar Babies had worn was gone before he got to the shop and he was treated as a stray. If any of my neighbours had seen Babies they would have recognised him and he could have been saved.

“I are devastated, my daughters are devastated and our neighbours who loved Babies felt so sorry for what had happened they gathered together and helped me pay £100 for a cremation for him today.

“I was able to bring Babies home and had to explain to my 10-year-old daughter what had happened. She’s just heartbroken. We all are.”

Police attended the scene and spoke to Mrs Neeson and the person who took the cat to the pet supermarket.

A spokesman confirmed no crime was reported and no further action is expected.

The vet posted on Facebook last night: “I’d like to express my sympathies to the cat’s family at this difficult time, and I am sorry that this decision was made without them being present.

“This poor cat was suffering from chronic renal failure and had been for some time.

“The cat was presented to us as a stray by a concerned member of the public who felt sorry for him and took it upon herself to bring him to the vets.

“She firstly asked us to check for a microchip. None were detected and he didn’t have any other means of identification. She then asked for him to be examined by a vet.

“I have 12 years of experience as a vet and was able to diagnose and recognise the severity of the cat’s condition as a result of a thorough, clinical examination.

"The cat was very thin and had lost an awful lot of weight. He was very dehydrated, had very smelly uraemic breath and no tartar or oral disease to be anything else.

“I examined his abdomen and his left kidney was grossly enlarged. I could also feel a knobbly irregular indented surface which indicates renal infarction and major internal damage in the kidney.

“We discussed blood tests, but I subsequently advised that the poor cat was too far gone and that putting him to sleep was the kindest option. He was given an injection and drifted slowly off to sleep while being stroked by the young lady and the vet.

“Let me assure you that I would only ever take these actions as a last resort. I am a great animal lover and have four rescue cats at home, three of whom were nursed back to health following severe road traffic accidents and kept by me when no one claimed them.

A spokesperson for Pets At Home said: “We completely understand the family’s response and it’s never easy to lose a beloved pet. Our vet is very experienced, fully qualified and was acting in the best interests of the cat. We’d like to express our sympathies to the family at this difficult time.”

Stray animals are frequently brought to our vets and they always receive a full clinical examination. We will always try to rehome them whenever appropriate. The cat was brought in and presented as a stray. Our vet carried out a full medical examination as we do with all animals brought to us.

“He was not wearing a collar, and was scanned for a microchip but none was found. Unable to identify the owners and with the cat suffering, he made the difficult decision to put him down."

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