An Angus woman has warned that cats may be being stolen and used as bait by the organisers of illegal dog fights.
Cats have been going missing in Montrose and residents believe they are being stolen and used for ”cat coursing” where they are killed by fighting dogs.
The cats are put in cages or wheelie bins before pairs of savage dogs are introduced and encouraged to maul them.
Banned in Britain since 1835, the practice is supposedly used to prepare the terriers for illegal dog fights.
Montrose woman Margaret Gordon said it was known that dog fighting goes on in Angus but pet owners are terrified to speak out for fear of reprisals.
She fears her cat and a neighbour’s cat were stolen by what she believes was a dog-fighting ring and taken to Brechin before being ditched when a fight was called off.
She has now bought a tracking device in case her cat goes missing again.
She said: ”There is a lot of talk about dog fighting in Montrose and people know it goes on. Cats have been going missing and it makes you think they are being stolen for dog fighting.
”My neighbours have all said they will look out for each other’s cats, and I’ve bought a tracking system so if he goes missing again we will know exactly where he is.
”I’m hoping they see this on his collar and leave him alone because I just feel they will come back. Cats are an easy target because they do go off and you don’t always report them missing straight away.”
She believes the cats are used to rile up fighting dogs, which are then allowed to tear the felines apart before being turned on each other.
Talking about the night her cat went missing, she said: ”A neighbour in my street came round to ask if I had seen one of her cats because it hadn’t come home, which was very unusual.
”My cat used to disappear all the time when he was a kitten so I wasn’t too alarmed by it. I had just put mine out at 6pm and the next day he never appeared home.
”The first thing that came to my mind was either a fox had got them or the dog fighters because I know that’s something which goes on.
”She got her cat back three-and-a-half weeks after it disappeared and I got mine back five weeks after it disappeared.
”Both cats were found near the Huntly Hill area of Brechin,” which she said is an area where it was known dog fighting has taken place.
The cats had been fending for themselves before being found scavenging and were taken to the Cats’ Protection League.
She said: ”I heard the dog fight had been cancelled and they let them go because I don’t think two cats could have escaped and I don’t think they would have both wandered up to Brechin.”
Reports of ”cat coursing” have recently increased in many northern English towns, with incidents in Blackburn, Darlington and Doncaster.
The League Against Cruel Sports said: ”It is absolutely horrifying that these animals are being used in this way. But hopefully this will highlight to the public the scale of the problem and encourage people to report any information on dog fighting they might have to the police and to us.”
Scottish SPCA Chief Superintendent Mike Flynn said: ”We have previously gathered intelligence which demonstrates that cats have been used to prepare dogs for illegal blood sports such as baiting and dog fighting. One training method we are aware of is live cats being put inside a wheelie bin with a dog in order to get the dog used to killing and being injured.
”However, these types of incidents are thankfully very rare. We would like to stress that this is not a widespread occurrence and we currently do not have any specific concerns about this activity in any area of Scotland.
“We will continue to actively target those involved in animal fighting and we urge members of the public to call us, even anonymously, to raise any concerns they might have.”
A Tayside Police spokeswoman said they had received no reports of dog fighting in the Montrose or Brechin area.