Seed said the cats were killing his wife's birds

William Seed, from Lancashire, earlier admitted smashing the three cats over the heads with a hammer and then drowning them in a dustbin filled with water.

On Wednesday Seed, from Longridge, was given a six-month community rehabilitation order and ordered to pay �750 compensation to the cats' owners and �810 court costs.

Magistrates in Blackburn described Seed's cruelty as "planned and serious" and heard he told police he might have killed up to 10 cats in the last three years.

Sentencing him, magistrate Geoffrey Jackson said: "We have considered the effects on the victims [and] distress to the owners of the cats."

Hopefully the fact that magistrates have dealt with this so seriously will act as a deterrent to others RSPCA spokeswoman

Retired farm worker Seed, from Higher Road, admitted to police that he started targeting the cats as a "last resort", to stop them catching birds in his garden.

The court heard that last August he killed two cats, George and Mildred, owned by neighbour Samantha Griffiths.

He also killed a black cat named Claudia, belonging to Shirley Shorrock, 29, in May.

A fourth cat, Rosie, belonging to neighbour Ian Marwood, was found dead outside Seed's house in 1999.

Seed pleaded guilty to criminal damage to the owners of the pets.

Speaking outside Blackburn Magistrates Court, Seed said he had received hate mail and strange phone calls since proceedings began.

'Jail unlikely'

"We have had three windows broken and everyone runs past shouting 'cat killer' or meowing," he said.

Seed added he was sorry for the distress he had caused but did not know what else to do to stop the cats killing his wife's birds.

A spokeswoman for the RSPCA welcomed high compensation ordered in the case.

She said: "It is extraordinary for people to get prison sentences for cruelty to animals but costs are much higher than we would normally see so the magistrates have taken this very seriously.

"Hopefully the fact that magistrates have dealt with this so seriously will act as a deterrent to others."