A cat had to have its leg amputated – after being blasted by a gun.
Gringo went missing from his home just before Christmas and returned five days later with horrific injuries.
It was rushed to the vets who believed the animal, from St Blazey, Cornwall, had been run over by a car.
But following an X-ray, the cat was revealed to have been the victim of a gunman – and was full of 20 lead pellets.
Gringo was given a strong dose of painkillers and had to have his leg amputated.
His owners could not fit the £1086 bill for surgery so he is now looked after by local cat charity, Sally’s Cat Rescue.
Sam Hawke, a volunteer at the centre in St Austell, said: “He’s such a gorgeous cat.
It makes you feel sick when you see something like this.
“He has his front right leg amputated. He is such a gorgeous friendly cat that would approach anyone, which is probably why he was targeted.
“We are unsure when the attack took place, it could have been any of the days he was missing but we think it was likely in the first couple of days.
“The owner is blown away at what we have been able to do and it is likely we will spend many more hundreds on Gringo to get him back to full health.
“If Gringo doesn’t have any further problems from the bullets we hope he will be able to recover – the fact that his leg was amputated isn’t an issue. Cats don’t miss a leg and can manage with just one.
“We are having to keep an eye on him because if he does get blood poisoning he will need antibiotics.”
Over £1,200 was raised to pay for Gringo’s treatment on a fundraising website.
His front right foot was so badly broken and injured that vets amputated the leg.
But since the surgery, he seems to be doing well.
The co-coordinator at the centre, Sally Olford, said: “He is doing well now.
“He even had turkey for Christmas.”
The incident involving Gringo has been reported to the police and RSPCA.
