CONVICTED (2018) | Robert McKie, born 03/01/1992, of Woodside Road, Chilwell, Beeston NG9 5GX – killed his pet cat after leaving her tethered in a filled bath
Soldier Robert McKie claimed his cat died accidentally after he left her alone in the bath and went out to collect his wife.
Paul Wright, prosecuting, said the cat had “urinated and defecated” in McKie’s home. He put her in a dog crate for 24 hours on the day before she was found dead at the house.
The cat’s body was exhumed after McKie’s wife called the RSPCA to say her husband “kept it in a cage and killed it while washing it in the bath.”
A post mortem found bruising to the abdominal area. Pressure to the right jugular vein had caused protrusion of the eye. Asphyxia was not ruled out.
When questioned by the RSPCA, McKie said he placed the cat in the bath and put soap on her fur to wash it. He then left her tethered with a dog lead and went to collect his wife.
“When they returned home, he said it was hanging over the side of the bath, that it had got out of the bath and the lead was attached,” said Mr Wright.
McKie pleaded guilty to failing to provide a suitable environment for the cat on July 4, 2017, and causing unnecessary suffering the next day.
He told the court: “I am sorry for what happened to my cat. In hindsight, I wish I had put it back in the crate.
“I left her and everything was calm. She had calmed down. I didn’t see it as a problem.
“As I started washing the cat, it will be clinging onto anything with everything she has got.
“All I can say is that it was in no way malicious. With hindsight, I should have left it in the crate.”
He added that when a previous cat suffered a leg fracture, a vet told him that it should be kept in a crate for three months. He said: “That was strict advice from the vets themselves.”
McKie told the JPs that he served three years in the Army. He was accompanied in court by sergeant major Sean Ryan, who said that he would lose his job and house if sent to prison.
“The award of a non-custodial sentence would not necessarily mean that he will be retained in the Army. That matter would be decided by his commanding officer or a higher authority,” said Mr Ryan.
Sentencing: McKie was ordered to pay £300 costs to the RSPCA and a government tax of £85. He was banned for five years from keeping any animals (expired January 2023).
