With his cute whiskers and glossy fur, he looks as gentle and benign as could be. When he’s not indoors being petted by his owners, you’d probably expect Shiny the tom to be playing in the garden, perhaps chasing the occasional bird.
But things aren’t quite so perfect in the Cornish village of Little Treviscoe, where he lives. Neighbours say Shiny is terrorising the area and have branded him ‘devil cat’. Police have been called five times over his violent behaviour, which has left locals and their pets in need of medical treatment. They want the four-year-old cat to be put down.
His owners, however, insist he is innocent and the injured must have done something to provoke him. Police are powerless to act because laws designed to combat dangerous dogs don’t apply to cats. Paula Burton was taken to A&E in July after Shiny ran into her home and sank his claws into her arms and legs. The 42-year-old had bruising and cuts that required antibiotics.
She said: ‘He was hanging off my arm by his claws. He eventually let go and ran away but I had to go to hospital as my arm had become quite swollen. I love cats and I’d never normally complain – but this animal is out of control.’
Neighbour Carol Ballsdon said Shiny clawed her 90-year-old mother. She said: ‘She had a large skin tear down the arm, which we had to dress every day for three weeks, and two big puncture wounds on the back of her leg. It is just four sets of claws and a set of teeth coming at you.’
Another local said she used to use water to shoo Shiny away but has also had to throw hot tea over him. Tulia Terry, 43, said: ‘It launched off the fence and attached itself to my arm. I had to throw hot tea over it.’ Shiny has also laid into cats and dogs, costing owners vets’ bills.
Helen Wade’s elderly cat was attacked a couple of weeks ago by Shiny and was left with gaping cuts.
The 34-year-old carer said: ‘We’re living in misery – he’s like a devil cat. We’ve had a fence and a gate put in our front garden to try and stop him coming in, but he persists.
‘The laws need to be changed so the same rules apply for cats as they do dogs. If a cat attacks a person, they should be put down.’
Shiny’s owners Mandie and Adrian Knowles, who live in the village with their three children, have had him since he was a kitten. They say they had Shiny neutered after Miss Burton was attacked.
Mrs Knowles, 32, a learning support student, said: ‘I know people had problems with Shiny before but since he’s been neutered we’ve seen no signs of violent behaviour.
‘He’s an outdoor cat but will come inside and have his food around our two-year-old Poppy – we’ve never had any issues with our children. These people must have done something for him to act that way. He wouldn’t attack them out of the blue.
‘We’ve had the police knocking on our door about five times, and have had the RSPCA here – it’s getting ridiculous. The RSPCA found no problem with Shiny.’
Her 34-year-old husband, a dispatch supervisor, said: ‘It’s getting unfair on Shiny. If we genuinely thought this cat was attacking innocent people we would have him put down.’
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