Road workers out of line as dead cat gets painted over
A LOCAL authority has apologised for the distress caused when a dead cat was painted over on the side of a road.
Kerry County Council said it was examining how the incident happened, where road markings were apparently painted over the animal that was lying dead by a ditch near Ballyheigue, in north Kerry.
The black and white cat is pictured lying at the side of the road with a stripe of yellow paint over its front and rear paws.
"The re-marking of roads is carried out by a private company, under contract to Kerry County Council," a spokesman said.
"We are examining the issue and will consult with the contractor."
The spokesman added that the local authority regretted the "unfortunate incident" and apologised for any distress caused.
Animal welfare groups and members of the public have expressed their concerns, with several people posting the picture on social media at the weekend.
In a statement, Animal Help Net Kerry said the incident was shameful.
Shame
It posted the photograph on its Facebook page with a statement.
"We have just received this photo, when line painting was being done in the Ballyheigue area nobody cared enough to move this poor cat who had been killed by a car and the line was painted over it.
"Shame on those concerned," it added.
Wendy O'Connor, of Animal Help Net Kerry, said the photograph was taken by a member of the public and was then sent into Animal Health Net Kerry, which posted it on its website.
Ms O'Connor said the images were very upsetting and the photograph had attracted a lot of commentary over the apparent callousness of leaving it on the road since it went online last week.
The animal's remains have since been removed.
"As far as I know, no owners have come forward for the cat and we still don't know who removed the cat's body. We're hoping it was a feral cat that didn't have a family, so there's not children there who are waiting for him to come home."