Breaking: PETA Issues Warning After Suspected Mass Cat Poisoning in Fulton County (VIDEO)

For Immediate Release:
June 24, 2026

Contact:
Andrew Grant 202-483-7382

Following reports that eight cats died this week in what officials suspect was a deliberate poisoning with antifreeze near Westfield Drive, PETA is rushing an urgent alert to local airwaves, warning people to keep cats safe by keeping them indoors. PETA’s video spot, which features It actor Jaeden Martell, shows a series of sinister characters reaching for a can of gasoline, a golf club, poison, and a shotgun—followed by the warning, “Outdoor cats don’t go missing by themselves.”

A local animal shelter volunteer found six of the cats—two adults and four kittens—dead in a ditch on Sunday, with one still alive but staggering and seizing before dying. Authorities say a green, glowing substance believed to be antifreeze was found near the scene. According to reports, the cats displayed symptoms consistent with antifreeze poisoning, including fixed, pinpoint pupils and seizures. An additional kitten was later located and brought in for emergency treatment but ultimately died.

“The great outdoors is simply not great for cats, who can be perceived as a nuisance and harmed in heartbreaking and horrific ways,” says PETA Senior Vice President Colleen O’Brien. “PETA encourages all guardians to provide their cats with a happy and interesting indoor life safe from predators, speeding cars, and the many other dangers of the outdoor world.”

In addition to enduring violence and abuse at the hands of cruel and intolerant people, cats allowed to roam outdoors are at risk of contracting parasites or potentially fatal diseases, being attacked by predators or run over by cars, and encountering other hazards. PETA notes that cats kept indoors need to be physically and mentally stimulated with a view of the outdoors, toys, climbing structures, scratching posts, cat TV, and other enrichment. PETA offers a catio-building guide as well as a “cat guardian’s bible” written by PETA Founder Ingrid Newkirk that’s full of tips and available for purchase here.

PETA’s video series has run in Dayton, where a kitten was set on fire; Blaine, Minnesota, where alandlord allegedly poisoned cats whom a tenant was feeding; Los Angeles, where a man is accused of shooting multiple homeless cats with a crossbow; and Pequea Township, Pennsylvania, where a cat was shot in the head with a metal arrow. Many more cases are detailed on PETA’s website.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kitsfor people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.