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Gun Control Network is aware of thousands of cases of animal cruelty involving the use of airguns. They and other animal welfare groups are campaigning to have all airguns registered. They believe registration will help limit access to these guns, so only responsible individuals over 18 can have them. Under current legislation 'low powered" airguns do not need to be registered. They are bought and sold without any background checks and thousands of domestic pets, dogs, cats, farm animals, wild animals, birds including swans, geese, gulls, doves and pigeons are killed and injured every year in random acts of cruelty. Visit www.gun-control-network.org to see details of these and other incidents. Gun incidents involving animals 1 January – 9 June 2008 (Compiled by Gun Control Network) CATS Evening News (Edinburgh), 9 June 2008 A pet cat has lost an eye after being shot in the head with an air rifle in Tranent, East Lothian. Vets said she was lucky to be alive after the pellet lodged in her skull. Lancashire Evening Post, 7 June 2008 A cat belonging to a pensioner was shot at and had its leg broken in an air rifle attack in Brookfield. The shattered leg may now have to be amputated. Argus Lite, 4 June 2008 A cat has been injured in an airgun attack in Hove, Sussex. The attack has been reported to police. It is the latest in a spate of shootings. In one vets reported treating a cat with six pellet wounds. Crawley Observer, 30 May 2008 A cat suffered a chipped pelvis and has an air rifle pellet still lodged in his thigh after being shot in Broadfield, Sussex. Manchester Evening News, 28 May 2008 A cat has been left blinded after being shot in the eye with an airgun in Atherton, Wigan. The pellet shattered his eyeball and is still lodged in his neck. Western Telegraph, 18 May 2008 A cat found lying on the path to his home in Stackpole, Pembrokeshire, had been shot with an airgun. An X-ray revealed that it would be too dangerous to remove the pellet which is lodged near his spine. BBC, 15 May 2008 An estate in Ashford, Kent, has been deemed to be too dangerous for cats by the RSPCA. A family applying to re-home a cat have been turned down. A spokesperson for the charity said 90% of complaints in the area were from the estate, where cats had been targeted with air and pellet guns. The RSPCA has now announced that it intends to lift the ban (Only Kent, 29 May 2008). Bolton News, 14 May 2008 A cat is suffering from severe burns and a gunshot wound after the latest attack on a cat in the Great Lever. An airgun pellet was discovered lodged inside her and she had been so badly burned by boiling water that he fur has fallen out. Evening Star, 12 May 2008 A cat owner from Stowmarket, Suffolk, is disgusted at an attack on his pet which result in the cat being blasted with 15 shotgun pellets. The cat survived as, amazingly, the pellets had all avoided the cat's internal organs. Bolton News, 12 May 2008 A cat has been left partially paralysed after it was hit twice in the hip with pellets from an air rifle. The injured cat was found in a garden in Farnworth, Bolton. The RSPCA funded the operation needed to remove the pellets. Northumberland Gazette, 2 May 2008 A cat has been shot dead with an airgun in the garden of his home in Hartlepool, County Durham. Bearsden Herald, 1 May 2008 Two airgun attacks on cats in less than 24 hours in Bearsden, East Dunbartonshire, have led to calls for the weapons to be restricted. One of the attacks left one cat writhing in agony after being shot at close range in the chest. In another attack, which happened earlier in April a cat lost an eye after a pellet embedded in its skull. Shields Gazette, 29 April 2008 A cat has lost the sight in one eye after being shot with an airgun. The stray was found on the streets in South Tyneside and dropped off at South Tyneside and Sunderland Animal Rescue. Lynn News, 29 April 2008 An airgun attack has left a cat with a .22 pellet lodged in its skull. The cat from Gaywood, Norfolk, was shot in the head with the pellet entering his nose, passing through his mouth and lodging in the root of his tongue. His owner has been left with a £2,500 vet's bill. Pontypridd Observer, 8 May 2008 The paper has reported a number of instances of airgun abuse. In April a cat in Pontypridd was found with airgun pellets hanging out of its neck and chin. The owner said that this was the fourth attack on the cat in one year. In March and April two cats, a horse and a bird were shot with airgun pellets resulting in two of the animals having to be put to sleep because of the seriousness of their injuries. This is Gloucestershire, 25 April 2008 A cat belonging to a nine-year-old boy has been left with horrific eye injuries after being shot by an air rifle in Walton Cardiff, Gloucestershire. The cause of the injuries was discovered when X-rays were taken. This is the second time that the pet has been shot. Daily Echo, 24 April 2008 A cat was fighting for her life after being shot in the spine with an air rifle in West Moors, Dorset. The attack is believed to have taken place in a forest behind the cat's home. Daily Echo, 24 April 2008 Another cat has been left fatally wounded in an airgun attack. The cat was shot with an airgun pellet at Lower Bockhampton, Dorset, and was left paralysed in his back legs. His owners had no choice but to have their pet put down. Chad (Mansfield), 23 April 2008 A 10-year-old cat was found dead by its owners near their home in Mansfield. The pet had an air weapon wound in the left-hand side of her stomach. Bucks Herald, 23 April 2008 A cat from Aylesbury has survived an air weapon attack despite suffering horrific injuries. Her pelvis was shattered by one pellet which entered above her left hind leg and she had a hernia where another pellet had ruptured part of her abdomen. Kent Online, 11 April 2008 A woman whose two cats were shot with an air rifle in Marden now fears for the safety of her two young children. In the latest attack her car staggered into the home with pellets lodged in her head, leg and chest. In the previous attack another of her cats was injured in the foot. Evening News (Edinburgh), 11 April 2008 A stray cat has been found in South Queensferry horrifically injured after being shot with an airgun 40 times. It is believed that the cat was held down while being repeatedly shot. He has had to have one of his legs amputated. Weston & Somerset Mercury, 10 April 2008 A cat has died after being hit by an airgun pellet in Weston Village, Somerset. Her owner found the cat wheezing and when she was turned over she could see she was bleeding. She was pronounced dead on arrival at a veterinary centre. Kent News, 10 April 2008 Three cats have been badly injured after being shot with air rifles in incidents in Biggin Hill, Eltham and Westerham. News Shopper, 9 April 2008 A cat was shot through the eye with an air rifle in Eltham, south east London. He was taken to the vets after arriving home wounded and has had to have an eye removed. Chad (Mansfield), 9 April 2008 A cat is recovering after becoming a victim of an air rifle shooting in Shirebrook, Nottinghamshire. He suffered multiple fractures in the shooting which happened in the garden of his new home. The Press (York), 7 April 2008 A cat shot near her home in York has died following a two-and-a-half hour operation in a bid to save her life. The vet's bill will cost her owner more than £1000. An airgun pellet had lodged in the cat's abdomen damaging her liver and intestines. Shropshire Star, 4 April 2008 A kitten was left desperately clinging to life after being shot "at close range" with an air rifle. She was found by her owner cowering behind a shed in the garden in Wellington. BBC, 3 April 2008 Vets were trying to save the sight of a cat after it was shot in the eye with an airgun in Woodley, Berkshire. The owners found the cat cowering under a bed with one eye closed. The Sentinel, 31 March 2008 A family's pet cat is recovering after an operation to remove an airgun pellet. She was shot in the spine in Cheadle, Staffordshire, in February 2008. Spalding Guardian, 30 March 2008 A cat died shortly after being found by her owner lying injured in his shed in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. She had been shot in the stomach with an air rifle and died because of severe internal bleeding. Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 24 March 2008 A cat is lucky to be alive after he was shot with an airgun. The cat was fine when he was let out of the family house in West Denton, Newcastle, but three hours later he was found in agony under a bush in the front garden. A vet discovered that a pellet had gone through his kidney and perforated his intestine and pancreas. Major surgery saved his life. Chorley Guardian, 20 March 2008 A kitten had to undergo emergency surgery after an airgun pellet went through his side, liver, kidney and spleen causing internal bleeding. His owner from Chorley, Lancashire, found her pet very quiet and lethargic and she picked him up she felt a hole in his side. Sunderland Echo, 19 March 2008 Two pet cats were lucky to survive after they were both shot with an air rifle in South Hylton. Their owner said that his neighbourhood has been repeatedly targeted by thugs with airguns. He has now alerted the police and other residents to the problem in a bid to put a stop to it. South Wales Echo, 15 March 2008 A kitten died after being shot "just for the thrill of it" according to his owners. The kitten suffered an air rifle wound when he was shot in fields near their home in St Brides Wentlodge, Gwent. Express & Star, 15 March 2008 A pet cat has been shot at point blank range with an air rifle in an attack in Bilbrook, Wolverhampton. A metal pellet lodged just an inch away from her spine. BBC, 13 March 2008 A cat required surgery after being shot with a suspected airgun pellet in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire. Whitby Gazette, 7 March 2008 Two cats have been shot, probably with an air rifle, in attacks in Whitby, North Yorkshire. One of the cats needed extensive surgery and has lost the sight in one eye. The other cat will also need treatment after being shot in the cheek. BBC, 4 March 2008 A cat has suffered injuries to its neck and mouth after it was shot in the garden of a house in Binscombe, near Godalming in Surrey. The offenders are believed to have gone to the back of the house and shot the cat in the right side of the neck. The cat was shot with an air rifle and has since died (Surrey Advertiser, 25 March 2008). Welwyn & Hatfield Times, 27 February 2008 The Potters Bar Edition of the paper revealed an attack on a cat which is now recovering after being shot three times with an air rifle. Kent News, 26 February 2008 The RSPCA is appealing for information after a cat was shot with an air rifle in Westerham. A pellet was removed from close to his spinal cord. Forfar Dispatch, 26 February 2008 A family cat has been seriously wounded by an airgun pellet in Letham, Angus. Vets discovered that she was the victim of an air rifle attack and that the pellet had penetrated through into her neck. This is Lancashire, 22 February 2008 A cat was recovering in surgery after an operation after being discovered in the back garden of a house in Halliwell. X-rays showed that there was an airgun pellet in the left thigh bone which had shattered. The pellet was removed and the leg pinned. Sunderland Echo, 16 February 2008 An injured cat was found by a dog walker on a football field in South Hylton. The cat had been shot in the head with an airgun and left for dead. Vets removed the pellet and the cat is now in a stable condition. Personal Communication, 15 February 2008 A correspondent in Rushden, Northamptonshire, has told us about an airgun attack which has left her cat with a pellet embedded in her leg (click here) Manchester Evening News, 11 February 2008 A cat has been scarred for life after he was nearly killed in an air rifle attack in Wigan. A pellet had narrowly missed his brain and had brushed past his eye before lodging in his right shoulder. It has been decided not to remove the pellet because surgery would be too dangerous. Rhondda Leader, 31 January 2008 An airgun attack has left a family cat from Tylorstown needing surgery after a pellet was lodged in his spine. It was not possible to remove the pellet but the cat is making a reasonable recovery. Scunthorpe Telegraph, 28 January 2008 A family's pet cat has died after being shot through the spine with an air rifle in Scunthorpe. One pellet became lodged in her back and another in her stomach. Evening News (Norwich), 19 January 2008 Treatment for a cat who was left for dead after being shot with an airgun close to Mousehold Heath in Norwich in July 2007 has cost the RSPCA £1,500. He is now on the road to recovery. Mousehold Heath has been the site of youngsters spotted playing war games with imitation guns. Malvern Gazette, 17 January 2008 A kitten was found lying injured in a box in the garden of his home in Malvern. She had been shot with an airgun leaving a pellet lodged near her spine. It is thought that someone may simply have used the kitten for target practice. The kitten is slowly recovering. Mansfield Chad, 15 January 2008 A cat is recovering after being shot in an airgun attack in the area of its home in Mansfield. Vets removed a pellet from its flank. Bucks Free Press, 10 January 2008 A cat was shot in the chest with an air rifle in Chalfont St Peter. The pellet became lodged on the opposite side of her chest, and vets said that it was "a miracle" the pellet missed all of her major organs. This is Cheshire, 4 January 2008 A cat sustained a wound at the base of his tail after being shot with a high powered gun in Great Sankey. This is Wiltshire, 3 January 2008 A pet cat from Trowbridge has been shot in the neck with an air rifle. It is the second time in the last few months that she has been targeted.
DOGS BBC, 26 May 2008 A dog guarding a business premises in Colchester, Essex, has had to be put down after being shot. Lancashire Evening Post, 27 April 2008 Police marksmen shot dead a pair of Rottweilers who attacked and killed a horse in a field in Haslingden, near Blackburn. BBC, 4 February 2008 A Rottweiler was shot dead by armed police officers after it attacked its owners in Maidstone, Kent. Worcester News, 17 January 2008 Gary Childe shot his dog four times with an air rifle after hitting it with a saucepan. He has been given four months in jail for causing 'incredible cruelty' to his pet. The incident occurred in May 2007 in his garden in Stourport-on-Severn when Childe got home from the pub to find his pet having a fit in the back garden. The dog was put to sleep at a vets when Childe claimed it had been attacked by his other dog.
HORSES AND FARM ANIMALS Pontypridd Observer, 8 May 2008 The paper has reported a number of instances of airgun abuse. In April a cat in Pontypridd was found with airgun pellets hanging out of its neck and chin. The owner said that this was the fourth attack on the cat in one year. In March and April two cats, a horse and a bird were shot with airgun pellets resulting in two of the animals having to be put to sleep because of the seriousness of their injuries. BBC, 5 May 2008 Two Shetland ponies have been shot dead in their field in Whitchurch, Shropshire. Two youths, aged 17 and 14, have been charged with firearms offences, criminal damage and cruelty to animals. Exmouth Journal, 13 March 2008 A day-old lamb was killed with an airgun on a farm in Clyst St Mary, Devon. Bolton News, 8 March 2008 A show horse has been shot with an airgun in his stables in Radcliffe. He will be left with a scar after having had a pellet removed from his face. The horse is the latest victim in a string of airgun attacks on animals in Bolton.
WILD ANIMALS Epsom Guardian, 30 May 2008 A heron was the latest victim in a wave of animal shootings in Merton, south London. The bird was found in Morden after being attacked with an airgun. Recently a fox and a squirrel were shot and killed in Mitcham. In neighbouring boroughs a squirrel, crow and two foxes have also been shot. Airguns and crossbows have been used. BBC, 20 May 2008 Two headless seals whose corpses were found close to a salmon farm at Kyle of Lochalsh are thought by wildlife campaigners to have been shot and decapitated to try and hide the fact that they were shot at all. Guardian, 22 March 2008 The British Deer Society are launching an anti-poaching campaign and will press the Association of Chief Police Officers to provide greater resources for what it describes as "gun crime" in the countryside. As many as 50,000 deer are killed every year by night-time poachers and illegal bloodsports fanatics. Shotguns, .22 rifles and crossbows are all being used. Shooting deer at night is a crime. Leicester Mercury, 18 March 2008 A badger was shot seven times in the head in an air rifle attack. It was found dead and covered in blood by riverside rangers in Aylestone Meadows, Leicester. Badgers and their setts are legally protected.
BIRDS OF PREY Evening Telegraph (Northampton), 7 June 2008 A buzzard has died after being illegally shot in a field near Great Addington. The landowner found the bird and noticed it had a gunshot wound and reported it to animal charity Safewings. It died despite receiving treatment. Daily Echo, 16 May 2008 Protected birds of prey are being found with shotgun wounds in the area around Blandford, Dorset. Nine birds, all with pellet wounds from a 16-gauge shotgun, have been brought into a rescue centre in the last three months. The man who runs the centre believes the four buzzards, two sparrowhawks, two kestrels and a tawny owl were deliberately blasted. BBC, 21 April 2008 The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has warned that illegal shooting is threatening the survival of Britain's bird of prey population. It believes that some killings are being carried out by those who see birds of prey as a threat to the grouse shooting industry. The killings are happening in areas such as the north Pennines, the Yorkshire Dales, the North York Moors and the Peak District. Hunts Post, 3 April 2008 A bird of prey died a week after being deliberately injured in a shotgun attack. The buzzard was found at the side of a road in Ramsey, Cambridgeshire. BBC, 17 March 2008 Police are investigating after a rare peregrine falcon was shot and injured in St Lawrence, near Ventnor on the Isle of Wight. The bird was discovered with a gun shot wound to its back in the garden of a house. A vet found an airgun pellet still lodged in its body as well as signs of earlier shotgun wounds that had healed. BBC, 6 March 2008 A buzzard has died after it was found shot in Potcote, Northamptonshire. An x-ray revealed the bird's body contained three shotgun pellets.
SWANS AND WILDFOWL This is Lincolnshire, 31 May 2008 Two swans have been shot dead with air rifles in Lincolnshire. The first was found by a member of the public at Sturton-by-Stow and a search of the area uncovered another. Both had gunshot wounds to the neck and head. Kent Online, 22 May 2008 Youngsters have reportedly been killing ducks and a swan on the River Stour. The dead birds have been found by boatmen and people living along the river at Fordwich. One of the latest victims was a duck that frequently visited the local pub. Two teenagers who have been seen several times on the cycle path beside the river with an air rifle, are being blamed for the killings. yourcanterbury.co.uk, 24 April 2008 A swan has been shot twice in the head with an air rifle in Canterbury. She is now recovering at a wildlife centre in East Sussex. Manchester Evening News, 2 April 2008 A dead coot recovered from Little Lever, Greater Manchester, was found to have been shot with an air weapon. It is illegal to kill these birds during the mating season from March to July. Evening Telegraph (Derby), 1 April 2008 A swan has been found dead and another seriously injured in an airgun attack near a canal in Long Eaton, Derbyshire. The injured bird had to be put down by a vet a week later. Manchester Evening News, 27 March 2008 A Canada goose was shot dead with an air rifle in Moston, Greater Manchester. Police were called following reports that the bird had been shot and killed. A description of the man responsible was given to the police. This is Hertfordshire, 19 March 2008 A goose had to be put done after it was shot with an air rifle at Stanborough Lakes, Welwyn Garden City. The bird was rescued from the water by an RSPCA inspector. An hour long operation revealed that the pellet had shattered the ear canal and the goose would not recover. The RSPCA is caring for another goose which may also have been shot with an air rifle. Neath Guardian, 13 March 2008 An injured swan has been found to have air rifle pellets lodged in its neck. The swan was shot at Banwen Pond in the Dulais Valley. BBC, 13 March 2008 Three men have appeared in court accused of killing 29 swans. The birds, all shot, were found buried in a freshly dug pit at Radwell Lake, Bedfordshire, in October 2007. The lake was purpose-built for legal shoots by two of the men. The men were all charged under the Wildlife and Countryside Act with intentional killing of mute swans. One of the men denied charges of possession of a rifle and ammunition and failing to comply with a condition on his firearms certificate. News & Star, 23 February 2008 A duck has managed to survive despite being shot three times with an airgun. The mallard drake was found by a member of the public in Maryport, Cumbria. An RSPCA inspector said that the animal has suffered immensely because "someone callously decided to use him as target practice". BBC, 13 February 2008 A swan which had been shot in the eye with an airgun has been rescued from a lake near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. The bird is being cared for at a wildlife sanctuary. BBC, 13 February 2008 A male swan which had been shot dead with an air rifle was found on the canal bank in Tipton, West Midlands. It had suffered broken bones and internal bleeding in the attack. Sunderland Echo, 30 January 2008 A £500 reward is being offered for any information leading to a successful prosecution of the person responsible for the death of a swan in Hetton Lyons Country Park in Wearside. The swan was floating in a lake. A vet's report showed that the fatal head wound was consistent with a pellet from a ball bearing gun. A total of five swans were discovered dead or seriously injured in the park during January and February 2008 (Shields Gazette, 5 March 2008).
OTHER BIRDS Epsom Guardian, 30 May 2008 A heron was the latest victim in a wave of animal shootings in Merton, south London. The bird was found in Morden after being attacked with an airgun. Recently a fox and a squirrel were shot and killed in Mitcham. In neighbouring boroughs a squirrel, crow and two foxes have also been shot. Airguns and crossbows have been used. Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 16 May 2008 Five seagulls have been found dead with apparent airgun injuries, three in Carlin How in Cleveland and two in Robin Hood's Bay near Whitby in North Yorkshire. Burton Mail, 9 May 2008 Local people who enjoy the tranquillity of the Burton Mail Centenary Woodland at Burton, Staffordshire, have been shocked to see a man carrying an air rifle which he has been using to take pot shots at birds nesting in the woods. Bexhill-on-Sea Observer, 15 April 2008 East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service report that there have been six shootings of seagulls in Hastings, Sussex, in the last three weeks. According to their casualty care manager people are shooting the gulls with a shotgun rather than an air rifle. However, in neighbouring Bexhill two seagulls have been shot with air rifles within two weeks (Bexhill-on-Sea Observer, 18 April 2008). Lancashire Telegraph, 9 April 2008 Air rifle thugs are shooting rare birds at a nature reserve in Colne. Passers-by saw men lying on the ground and shooting at bird tables in the reserve. When approached the men said they were practising target shooting. Police said the men put at risk the lives of families enjoying the reserve who could have been hit by a stray pellet. Express & Star, 7 April 2008 A dove let out for a flight by its owner has been shot with an air rifle. The bird was one of three released that were perching on the roof of the owner's house in Brierley Hill, West Midlands, when it was hit. The Star (Sheffield), 12 February 2008 One of three teenagers arrested after a spate of catapult and airgun attacks in Platts Common, South Yorkshire (see above) had two dead birds in his pocket. The robin and goldcrest had been shot with an air rifle. The youth said he was going to feed them to his ferret. Kent News, 12 February 2008 A man has pleaded guilty to shooting a seagull with a pellet gun near his home in Margate in August 2007. Christopher Fraser-Nash was fined £100 and ordered to pay £600 in court costs as well as forfeiting the gun and ammunition.
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