ProtectaPet®, a UK based company which designs, manufactures, exports and installs cat containment products, has seen an unprecedented amount of enquiries this week as the London Cat Killer continues uncaught. The culprit started operating in Croydon, but has now expanded territory and frequency, killing 3 cats this week alone in Kingston, Frimley and Bromley. Experts are beginning to question whether an individual or several people are to blame.
The company, which has been retailing and installing their patented cat containment systems since July 2012, has seen a 30% increase in online shop sales year on year. This is mainly attributable to owners’ increasing desire to control cats’ territories in order to protect them from the everyday risks of increasingly busier roads, fighting with other cats in the neighbourhood and the consumption of pest control, such as slug pellets.
However, the proliferation of cat killings and mutilations in London and Gloucestershire has propelled cat containment products into the minds of anxious cat owners. Simon Davies, Director of Operations, said: ‘Sadly, we hear about animal cruelty from our customers on a daily basis with antifreeze poisioning and shotgun wounds being the most common. Since the London Cat Killer’s regular appearance in national news, we are finding that cat owners from across the country are contacting us, while at least one quarter of enquiries are from London.’
Louise DuCarey, a previous customer, contacted ProtectaPet® in January: “The horrific goings on in Croydon within the last two years were on Sky news today with a £5,000 reward to catch the person or persons mutilating cats in the area. Celebrities are also trying to help and the word is to keep their cats in doors. Please help if you can! I have sent a link to your website to the Croydon local newspaper. But we are so happy with the fencing that you must put the word about as most people I know will not get a cat because they have had too many upsets.”
Eve Davies, Director of Communications, said: “We advise owners of outdoor cats to minimise the risks of free-roaming by: vaccinating, neutering and microchipping, regulalrly treating for fleas, ticks and worms, keeping cats inside at night and during rush hours (get into the habit of feeding them before dusk so that they return at the approriate time). Finally, report any suspicious behaviour towards cats to the RSPCA or police.”
Click here to read the article in the Croydon Advertiser.