A HEARTBROKEN cat owner has issued a warning after she had to put down two of her beloved pets because of what is believed to be anti-freeze poisoning.

Joedi Quartey, who lives in Mossfield Road, Kearsley, also said that a neighbour has lost three cats in similar circumstances.

Several cats have also been found in bushes around Mossfield Road and Springfield Road and Miss Quartey believes that these could have been poisoned cats that just didn't make it home.

The RSPCA is investigating the incidents.

Miss Quartey, aged 39, says she lost her cat Honey in June last year because of the poisoning and then last Tuesday her cat Bert came home unwell. She took him to the vet but brought him home again.

When she returned from work the following day her mother told her that a neighbour's cat had been poisoned with anti-freeze, so Miss Quartey took Bert back to the vet and he then had to be put down.

Miss Quartey said that her neighbour also lost a cat in June as well as a kitten six weeks ago.

She said: "The first ones happened last June, there was my cat that had come back unwell and when I took it to the vet it had taken in some anti-freeze and it died a couple of days later.

"It's a very very excruciatingly painful death, it can take three or four days. I don't know if it is by accident or on purpose. It just seems to be happening to too many. There are too many at the same time.

"There have been quite a few found in bushes in the area, so people are wondering if they just haven't made it home. They are like my babies. The one that died last week was only a year-and-a-half old."

Miss Quartey wants to raise awareness of what is happening to try and protect other pet owners from going through the same heartbreak.

An RSPCA spokesperson said: "We would be very concerned to hear that someone might be deliberately hurting cats and would urge anyone using any poisonous substances to be careful and follow all precautionary guidance.

"We have received a report earlier this month that a cat had been poisoned in the Mossfield Road area and will be looking into this further.

"Anyone with any information about the poisoning of cats in the Kearsley area should get in touch with the RSPCA by calling 0300 1234 999."

If you are concerned that your pet may have been poisoned, contact your vet as soon as possible.

Signs that an animal has been poisoned include depression, lack of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea, breathing difficulties and bad breath and twitching or seizures.

People are also urged to be careful when using substances such as anti-freeze and to properly dispose of them.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said that they were called on Thursday, April 13 to a report of suspicious circumstances involving cats.

It was reported that cats had been poisoned with anti-freeze and police handed the matter over to the RSPCA.