PET owners have been warned to be on their guard after a cat was shot with an air rifle in an Ilkley street.

Owners Steve and Sue Chambers noticed something was wrong with their three-year-old tabby cat Frank when he returned from a trip outside.

Mr Chambers, of Railway Terrace, said: "He came in and was making an awful growling noise and did not move."

A trip to the vet revealed nothing amiss but Mrs Chambers later discovered a hole in the cat's side.

Frank was then taken to White Cross Veterinary Centre in Guiseley where an X-ray examination revealed an air gun pellet lodged in the cat's side.

"We have no idea who might have done it and I have been making inquiries. There are a lot of cats around here - you can't believe it," said Mr Chambers.

He said he would be informing the police about the incident.

After an operation by vet Jan Harvey to remove the pellet, Mr and Mrs Chambers took Frank home yesterday to nurse him back to health.

He said the incident happened last Sunday just after 4.30pm when Frank had only been out for about half-an-hour.

As well as the upset of seeing the cat suffering because of someone else's criminal cruelty, the couple face a vet's bill of around £200.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.