Pet cat Ruby was left in pain after she was grasped by an animal trap
The deadly contraption that looks like it comes out of a medieval torture chamber had been set to indiscriminately catch innocent animals in a busy inner city area.
Ruby, a six year old female tabby, was left suffering in agony for two days after she stepped on the spring-loaded mechanism and its sharp teeth bit into her leg. By the time, she was discovered in a back garden still clasped by the contraption, her leg was so badly injured vets had no choice but amputate.
Sadly, Ruby is now up for adoption because the owner fears for the cat’s safety in her London neighbourhood. The Metropolitan Police is investigating the incident in the built up area of Stoke Newington, London. There are suspicions the trap may have been set to catch an urban fox.
“We believe this to be a gin trap, a mechanical device designed to catch an animal by its leg, using spring-operated jaws with teeth or a serrated edge,” says the RSPCA’s scientific officer Llewelyn Lowen.
She was left suffering for two days before discovered
“The use of gin traps has been outlawed in the UK since 1958, but some are still being illegally used to catch animals such as rabbits and foxes.
Gin traps are indiscriminate. The victims can just as easily be a family pet as a wild animal
“Gin traps are indiscriminate. The victims can just as easily be a family pet as a wild animal, but whichever the animal, these traps are lethal and cause a great deal of suffering and we are extremely concerned about their use.”
Ruby has been recovering at the RSPCA’s Harmsworth Animal Hospital in north London, and will be put up for adoption when she is ready to be rehomed. Her owner has decided it best if she lives in a different area.
How Ruby was mutilated in an inner city area by a contraption once the scourge of the countryside in a bygone age has shocked welfare campaigners.
Caroline Allen, the RSPCA’s London Veterinary Director, said: “If only people realised the damage traps like this can do.
I was shocked and horrified that such a thing could have been placed in the middle of London. “When Ruby came to us she was in extreme shock and distress and her paw was hanging off. It was awful.
“Her leg was almost completely severed above the wrist so there really was no other alternative but to amputate it.
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“She would have been in an incredible amount of pain, and probably for a couple of days from what we can tell.
“Luckily the operation went well, and Ruby is making a good recovery. She should be able to lead a happy, healthy life on three legs, although will need some adjusting and will always bear the scars of this lethal contraption.”
Anyone with any information about the incident should call the police on 101.
