THE family of a much-loved cat have spoken of their outrage after she was found dying in the street having been shot by an airgun — for the second time. 

Six-year-old Lulu was found struggling and distressed on the side of East Lancashire Road, Blackburn, in March and was rushed to the vets by a neighbour. 

Debbie and Henry Ramsey, Lulu’s owners, were called and left work to be by her side, where a vet told them that he had discovered a pellet lodged in her spine. The Siamese-cross had been left paralysed by the bullet and her chances of recovery were slim. 

Mrs Ramsey said: “The vet wanted to do an x-ray as something about her injuries just didn’t make sense to him. When he came back downstairs 10 minutes later, he was visibly shaken and angry and took us into the room to show us the x-ray — she’d been shot again.”

Two years earlier Lulu had been shot in the head.

 Despite recovering well after the first attack, this time Lulu wasn’t as lucky and the heart-breaking decision to put her down was made.

Now, in a bid to find the perpetrators, Lulu’s family are urging anyone with information to contact the RSPCA who have launched an investigation into the feline’s death.

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Mrs Ramsey added: “We are absolutely devastated and miss her very much. She was popular with our neighbours and I’m just terrified that whoever did this will kill our other cat, Bertie, as well.”

CCTV footage in the area has already revealed that Lulu was shot at around 12pm on Friday, March 8, over an hour before she was found.

As the airgun pellet was penetrating her spinal cord and causing paralysis to her hind legs and tail, she wouldn’t have been able to move very far which also narrows down the area where the attack happened.

RSPCA Inspector Sophie John said: “It is very distressing to think that people take pleasure in causing such horrific injuries to defenceless animals. These are deliberate and brutal acts of cruelty. 

“Cats and wildlife are normally the animals that are more susceptible to these incidents simply because they are out in the open with no one to protect them. Unfortunately, air rifle attacks are not as rare as we would like. Injuries caused by such attacks are horrific and often fatal.” 

If anyone heard a shot, or saw something unusual in East Lancs Road, contact the RSPCA appeal line on 0300 123 8018.