Video lets you listen in

Cat may have been shot in housing estate

Tomcat "Timo" was a little cuddler. His family is mourning the loss of the cute tiger.(Bild: Huf)

Tomcat "Timo" did not have an easy start in life. Born in Bulgaria, he was brought to Austria by Pfotenretter. Here he found a loving family in Großhöflein (Burgenland), who have now lost "Timo" in a cruel way. 

The story is actually unbelievable. But it began so beautifully: A small cat is rescued from Bulgaria, comes to Austria and finds a loving home with the Huf family in Großhöflein. "Timo" is sweet, cuddly, visits the neighbors, plays with the cats in the neighborhood and feels very comfortable in his home.

Until he suddenly disappeared. "It happened in the night from April 28 to 29," explains Julia Huf. She is still shocked at what she found out. When the cat disappeared, she was on vacation. Her parents fed "Timo" and looked after him. And were very worried when he suddenly disappeared. They searched, called, asked neighbors if they had seen "Timo". But all to no avail!

Surveillance video showed the cruel truth
"My parents suspected that the hunters had shot him, but I don't believe that. All the hunters know our 'Timo' and the cats in our neighborhood. They don't do anything to them," Julia Huf is convinced. So Julia set about analyzing the footage from the video camera.

She saw the velvet paw walking around in front of the carport covered by the video camera, playing with other cats in front of it and also strolling away. "Then he came back home and went out again after a few minutes," says the young woman.

Timo felt very comfortable in his home.(Bild: Huf)

Then the unbelievable scenes: You hear the sound of mopeds and suddenly three gunshots.

"If you know the area, you know where the mopeds were going just from the sounds. That was exactly the route that 'Timo' always takes," says Julia Huf, horrified. "When I heard the shots, my heart stopped."

 The young woman struggles to keep her composure. And after half an hour, she has to watch a video recording of her cat coming home. He drags himself into the garden. Staggers. Falls down. He is clearly in pain.

Targeted hunting for cats?
Then he's out of the picture. To this day, nobody knows where the animal went. The fact is, it's gone. "The video was horrifying," says Julia Huf, still shocked. She hopes that someone saw something. She still doesn't believe in the hunter version. It's more likely that someone else deliberately set out to hunt the cats. 

 A report has been made. "Please. If anyone has noticed anything, go to the police," she pleads. "Timo was a family member. We miss him every day."