'Heartbroken': Woman fears more attacks after beloved cat killed

Warning: Distressing content

A Pāpāmoa woman grieving the loss of a pet is “heartbroken” after another cat was killed in a suspected roaming dog attack three days later.

A neighbour said the cat was “ripped apart” and described the attack as “horrible and shocking”.

Vanessa Judd was “devastated” on learning Mac – her 8-year-old Ragdoll-Persian cross – was found fatally mauled on July 19.

Mac was found in Ruby Place, near her Topaz Drive home.

Tauranga City Council is investigating.

The attack came three days after Judd was forced to euthanise another cat, 5-year-old Belle.

Belle, the same breed as Mac, suffered “sudden paralysis” in its back legs.

She believed the cause was an aneurysm, a clot or possible nerve damage.

“We had no option. Belle started fading away on the vet’s treatment table.”

Mac was found dead in Ruby Pl, Pāpāmoa, after a suspected dog attack. Photo / Vanessa Judd

Judd said she last saw Mac about 12.30am on Sunday.

His food bowl was empty, and he was missing when she got up about 10.30am.

A Ruby Pl resident contacted her to say she had found Mac.

“When the lady told me Mac had been attacked and killed by roaming dogs and found dead on a grass verge in her street, I was stunned. He was a homebody who didn’t roam.

“I completely broke down when she described what happened. She was clearly very upset and told me she had been crying all morning.”

Judd said someone had kindly placed a towel over Mac’s body.

She said the caller told her two dogs were seen on her home security cameras pacing back and forth outside her property three times – once on Saturday and twice on the day of the attack.

The Ruby Pl resident, who spoke on condition she was not named, told the Bay of Plenty Times she and her husband heard dogs barking and a male voice yelling.

“It was horrible and shocking. I initially thought Mac was still alive, but when I lifted the towel, I could see the poor cat had been ripped apart.”

She said there was a “lot of anxiety” in the neighbourhood because they and others had cats.

The woman feared the dogs would return.

Another Ruby Pl resident said barking woke him on that Sunday about 5am. He saw two dogs on his property.

“I chased them off, and the dogs ran towards a reserve at the Domain Rd end of Ruby Pl.”

He said one of his cats returned home the next day limping, “trembling and traumatised”.

Neighbours are now being “extra vigilant” about keeping their animals and themselves safe.

Mac was considered more than just a pet. Photo / Vanessa Judd

Judd said Mac was far more than a pet, and the loss is “unbearable”.

“I bred Mac. He was a beautiful cream-coloured Ragdoll-Persian cross and a blue-point lynx. He was a big sook who loved cuddles and being groomed for hours.

“He was named after a close friend who died from cancer around the same time Mac was born, and he was harmless and wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

She said losing two cats in less than a week had left her family shattered.

“I feel empty, and my daughter is now terrified about letting our other cats outside.”

She said she and several neighbours also kept chickens.

“The longer these dogs roam loose, the more harm they can cause. My worst fear is that next time it could be a young child who is seriously injured or killed.”

Tauranga animal services team leader Oscar Glossop. Photo / Kelly O'Hara

Oscar Glossop, the council’s animal services team leader, said an investigation was launched after a complaint was received on July 20.

He encouraged anyone who witnessed the incident or had relevant information to contact the council.

Social media posts could not be treated as formal reports.

“Prompt reporting helps ensure incidents can be investigated quickly and allows officers to take any necessary action.”

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 25 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.