A couple in Hull fear their pet cat was deliberately killed after his severed tail was pushed through their letterbox. The eight-year-old tabby, Max, went missing from his home in Hull, East Yorkshire, on Monday, September 14. Five days later, his owners, Louise, 45, and Lisa, 47, found his distinctive white-tipped tail chopped off and posted through their letterbox.
Owners describe 'targeted attack'
The couple, who have asked for their surnames to be withheld, believe the cat was killed intentionally in a "targeted attack" against them. Louise said: "We are devastated and heartbroken - who could do such a thing to an animal. He was murdered for no reason at all."
Louise said Max would normally stay close to home: "It's not normal for him to go missing, so we knew something was wrong. He'd only go as far as the front or back garden, he was really happy at home." She recalled last seeing him on September 14: "I went out at 12pm last Monday and I put him in the front garden, telling him I'd be back later. But when I got home, he was nowhere to be seen."
Grim discovery at the mailbox
The couple put up missing posters and started a social media appeal. On Saturday morning, Lisa went to collect their mail from the shared post area at their block of flats. Louise described the moment: "I just heard Lisa screaming and crying. That is something I will never forget. She was calling for me to ring the police. I started crying and screaming. I just broke down."
Louise initially feared Lisa had found Max collapsed, but said: "When I got there I realised it was not his whole body, it was just his tail." She confirmed it was Max's: "He's a tabby cat with a white tip on the tail. It looks like a paintbrush."
Police investigation and impact on family
Louise reported the incident to Humberside Police. Max's tail has been sent to a specialist vet in Liverpool to look for DNA that could identify whoever handled it. Forensics have also checked the letterbox for clues. Police have told Louise they do not think it was an "animal attack".
Louise said: "I've got horrible images in my head that the tail was taken off while he was alive." She added: "I go through phases of not feeling anything, like a zombie, and then all of a sudden I get waves of emotion. It's awful not knowing where the rest of his body is."
Louise described Max as "full of character" and a "huge part of her family", spending most of his time sleeping on his bed. He was also a "patient big brother" to the couple's other cat, three-year-old Maple. Maple has been sent to stay with a friend because the couple no longer feel safe keeping her at the flat.
The ordeal has also affected Louise and Lisa's wedding plans after nine years together. They are still going ahead with the ceremony but have cancelled the celebration they had planned. Louise said: "It has put a massive shadow over it. We've told all of our guests that we aren't doing anything afterwards now, we're just going to the registry office and then for one drink." She added: "We were originally going to go to a pub in Hull to have a buffet. We still want to get married, we just can't bear the thought of celebrating."
Humberside Police said officers were called at around 12.30pm on September 19 after a cat's tail was pushed through the letterbox of an address on Appleton Road. Anyone with CCTV or information has been urged to call 101 quoting reference 26132718. The couple have also set up a GoFundMe, with the money offered as a reward to anyone who gives vital information that leads to an arrest or conviction.
