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A cat owner from Eastbourne wants antifreeze to become pet friendly after her cat was poisoned by it.

Carla Silsby’s five-year-old cat called Willow died on March 9 at Cobie VetCare, in Station Parade, due to poisoning. Carla says the vet suspects Willow was poisoned by antifreeze.

Carla said when she came down that morning Willow was ‘slumped out on the rug, freezing cold, floppy, with dilated pupils’.

She said, “I knew something was wrong so we went straight to the vets and within a matter of minutes they were asking me about antifreeze.”

Willow (right) with his brother Bluebell

Willow deteriorated further and had to be put down that afternoon.

Carla said a lot of people she’s spoken to since Willow’s death didn’t know antifreeze was toxic for cats.

She said, “This should be made more well known, there’s no warnings on the containers that it’s toxic.

“I want companies to put a bitter tasting element in the antifreeze to stop animals licking it up and dying horrific deaths.

“Antifreeze manufacturers know full well this stuff is a toxic killer, some use a bitter additive but a lot don’t.

“I want to see a full ban on antifreeze as it stands now or, make it ‘pet friendly’.”

She said the death is ‘breaking my son’s heart as well as mine’.

A spokesperson for charity Cats Protection said antifreeze is ‘particularly poisonous to cats’.

They said, “The solution contains ethylene glycol, a substance that can prove fatal if ingested. It only takes a small amount to harm a cat – whether they consciously drink it or walk through a puddle and then groom their fur.

“What makes antifreeze so deadly to cats is how quickly the chemical can affect their kidneys – sometimes the damage means that they are unable to survive.”

The charity spokesperson urged people to use products that do not contain ethylene glycol, clean up if you drain your car radiator and some of the solution remains, and keep products out of reach.

More information from Cats Protection

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