How did a pet cat travel over 26km across Auckland in one night? 

A North Shore woman whose cat turned up dead on the other side of town believes someone knows what happened to her much-loved pet - and her neighbours believe more cats have been targeted.  

Alexia Welsh of Unsworth Heights told the Herald that she last saw Willow on April 14, when the cat snuck outside at about 9pm. 

Welsh said her family kept their cats inside at night but Willow and another cat, Freddie, hopped out of the window that Sunday. 

Neither cat came home before dawn and then Freddie returned injured - before Welsh received the call every pet owner dreads. 

At 1pm, the Henderson Animal Centre called to tell her that Willow had been found by one of its contractors on Mount Wellington Highway, a 30-minute drive away over the Harbour Bridge and down the Southern Motorway. 

The 5-year-old tortoiseshell’s collar was missing and she was identified by microchip. 

Freddie’s injuries were severe and he was rushed to a vet for treatment to his back leg and defensive wounds. Welsh said the vet told her the injuries were not consistent with a cat or dog fight and could have been caused by a trap, noting that other injuries to his face and front paws showed he had “really fought hard to get away”. 

The vet told the Herald that they did not believe a gin trap-style device had been used but could not rule out another trap with a noose or a swinging door mechanism. 

Willow, Alexia Welsh's pet cat who turned up dead 26km away. Photo / Alexia Welsh 

”There’s no way she would have gone willingly in anyone’s car unless she’d been trapped,” Welsh said of Willow. ”She’s very timid.” 

Welsh believes that Freddie was able to escape a trap that caught Willow and the distressing incident has left her believing that one of her neighbours is targeting local cats. 

Welsh lives near the busy Northern Motorway and doesn’t believe Willow would have strayed into traffic if she was released in Mount Wellington. 

”I shudder to even think whether they’ve just chucked her out of the car,” Welsh told the Herald. 

She said Willow had previously gone missing for four days, returning home “very scared” and “jumping at any slight noise”, with Welsh wondering if she was caught and released to “teach her a lesson”. 

Where did the cats go? 

Willow is not the first of Alexia Welsh’s pets to go missing. 

Her cat Mickey went missing in February and has still not been found. She has appealed widely online for information but was blunt in her message to her community after Willow’s death. 

“This is not purely coincidence, especially given the timing between Willow’s death and Freddie’s injury. We strongly believe there is someone in the neighbourhood who is potentially trapping, dumping, and disposing of local cats. 

“There have been too many others who have gone missing also to ignore this any longer.” 

Alexia Welsh with Willow. Photo / Alexia Welsh 

A Facebook group for the neighbourhood has seen multiple posts from residents whose cats have gone missing or returned home with injuries. 

Some local residents spoken to by the Herald referenced anonymous posts made to the local Facebook group purportedly by a person threatening roaming neighbourhood cats. 

“You love your cats so keep them home,” the message read. 

“The ginger cat, the fat black-and-white one and the Greyish are all warned.” 

The message went on to say that the cats were catching birds nearby but not targeting rats, so rat traps and rat poison would be placed. 

“So please keep your cat at home to not be hurt by the traps.” 

A woman who lives a street away from Welsh shared details of her own missing pet. 

“One night he didn’t come back, I thought it might be normal, but the days went by and he didn’t come back. I called him, looked for him and nothing,” she told the Herald. 

“Within a week, other cats began to disappear from the same street where we lived.” 

Another woman whose cat returned home injured said she could not be sure the incidents were linked. 

“Our cat sustained suspicious injuries and it is impossible to know if they are related to others in the area. However, it is a bit of a coincidence,” she said. 

“I just can’t believe someone is doing this to my animals. Why would anyone do this? Every other week it’s ‘my cat’s missing, my cat’s missing’,” Alexia Welsh told the Herald. 

She said the belief a cat-killer lurked in her neighbourhood was distressing and she urged anyone with a problem with local cats to find other ways to try and keep them off their property. 

Alexia Welsh's daughter with Mickey before his disappearance. Photo / Alexia Welsh 

SPCA appeal 

The SPCA organised a leaflet drop around Welsh’s Unsworth Heights neighbourhood appealing for information on Mickey, advising other cat owners to consider keeping their pets at home during the night and warning that the use of illegal traps was an offence. 

“It is an offence to use a prohibited trap or device, to desert an animal without provision for its welfare or to ill-treat an animal,” the leaflet read. 

“These offences carry penalties of up to 12 months’ imprisonment and/or a $50,000 fine.” 

An SPCA spokesperson confirmed they were investigating the incidents and told the Herald that anyone who has witnessed an event or action that they believe constitutes a welfare offence should document details and report it. 

“If someone’s animal is ill or injured, they need to take it to a vet. If there are concerns that an injury may have been inflicted by someone, particularly if a vet can confirm this is a possibility, SPCA strongly encourages them to take photographs and report it. 

“If someone is making serious threats against animals, SPCA encourages people to report it by calling their local SPCA Centre or through the website,” the spokesperson said. 

“SPCA encourages people to keep their cats on their own property especially at night and during poor weather,” the added, suggesting that owners consider a secure outdoor space or ‘catio’. 

“These can be as modest or grand as your imagination and budget allow. A catio should include a variety of platforms at different heights, hiding places and scratching posts, food, water, litter trays, and protection from the weather and extremes of heat and cold. Remember to provide hiding places so your cat will feel safe and secure.” 

They advised anyone whose property is being visited by a cat to consider downloading a paper cat collar to establish contact with its owner. 

Chris Marriner is an Auckland-based journalist covering trending news and social media. He joined the Herald in 2003 and previously worked in the Herald’s visual team.