Poppy had been living at the shelter for nearly five years (Picture: MEN Media)
A ‘gentle and loving’ rescue cat has been found decapitated just yards away from its shelter.
Poppy, 13, was discovered headless just outside the perimeter of Oldham Cats in Middleton, Rochdale, by a neighbour on Thursday morning.
The cat’s head is still missing, assistant manager Davina Hanes, 52, said on Facebook.
She said the feline first came to the shelter, which finds new homes for stray and abandoned cats, in May 2019.
Hanes said: ‘Poppy was the sweetest, most gentle and loving of creatures and she fit into residency life here straight away… everyone doted upon her, volunteers and visitors alike.’
Hanes added that the shelter believes the ‘evil act’ happened Wednesday evening and all other resident cats have been safely locked inside in the evenings since.
Experts believe that the feline was ‘beheaded’ (Picture: MEN Media)
‘It angers, sickens and breaks our hearts that Poppy was beheaded and her head is still missing,’ she added.
‘No animal should have to endure what our sweet little Poppy was subject to.
‘Understandably, all our volunteers are heartbroken beyond belief: traumatised, angry and shocked by such a horrific act of animal cruelty.
‘Poppy was so innocently sweet, we’d all become her family over the years…her whole world.’
The tabby cat’s microchip confirmed it to be Poppy, with two experts agreeing that the feline had been ‘beheaded’ with a ‘clean-cut’, Manchester Evening News reported.
Another volunteer, Samantha Fahmy, said the shelter is now raising money to build a ‘catio’ near the office so that they will have more space and an outdoor element to their evening living quarters’.
More than £3,200 has been raised so far on a JustGiving page.
Trustee Faye Kennerley added on the Oldham Cats Facebook group that the community’s response to the ‘gut-wrenching’ death of Poppy has left the shelter volunteers feeling ‘humbled’.
‘What a following our rescue has, and it just goes to show the camaraderie built between us and you, our extended feline family,’ she said.
‘We will never forget this.’
Police urged anyone with information to contact them.
The force said: ‘Officers have received a report regarding a deceased cat on Saxon Street, Middleton, on Thursday 21 March.’
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