A Te Puke man who tried to kill a cat he was looking after has pleaded guilty to a charge of ill-treating the animal after he shot it five times with an air rifle.

The 44-year-old man, who was cat-sitting at the time, tried and failed to kill the feline after it damaged his curtains.

The vet's X-ray of the cat showing the pellets. Photo: Supplied.

The man refused to return the cat to its owners until they paid for the curtains, says Tauranga SPCA welfare officer Anna Porteous.

'There was a delay, and meanwhile the curtain damage continued, so he decided to kill the cat,” explains Anna.

'He reached the end of his tether and that was what he decided to do.”

His initial plan was to kill the cat with a single shot to the head. However, when that first shot failed, the cat subsequently ran away.

Over the course of the next five days, the man continued to take shots at the cat whenever it appeared, and when neighbours discovered the animal a week after the first shot, it was described as being 'in a very poor state”.

The cat's owners were called, and the feline was taken to Te Puke Vets, where it underwent treatment which included surgery.

X-rays showed the cat had taken a total of five pellets – including one up the nose as well as its neck and thoracic spine area.

The cat has now made a full recovery, and the offender paid reparations to the vet clinic for the cat's medical care before being sentenced to 70-hours of community service.

'The vet's bill was about $300,” says Anna. 'However, the cost of having the animal put down by a vet would have been about $50-$60.

'We would like to use this case to highlight the important issue of euthanasia.

'It is not enough for you to ‘try' to kill an animal – if you are not capable of killing the animal instantly and in a humane manner, then take the animal to the vet.

'This case being successful in court reinforces this. This man did not intend for the cat to suffer, but through his actions, it did, and to a significant extent.”