October 19, 2016 9.38 am This story is over 89 months old

RSPCA launches probe after malnourished and clawless cat found near Boston

A stray cat has been found matted and lifeless in Kirton, near Boston. The RSPCA was called on Tuesday, October 11 by a couple who became concerned for a cat who turned up in their garden in Drainside South. The animal welfare charity is now appealing for information about what happened to to the cat,…
Rinder was found skinny and clawless by a couple on October 11.

A stray cat has been found matted and lifeless in Kirton, near Boston.

The RSPCA was called on Tuesday, October 11 by a couple who became concerned for a cat who turned up in their garden in Drainside South.

The animal welfare charity is now appealing for information about what happened to to the cat, which was found to be matted, thin and clawless.

RSPCA inspector Becky Harper, who went along to collect the cat, said: “He was bedraggled, matted and skinny.

“The couple gave him a little bit of tinned casserole meat and when he came back for second and third helpings they knew his thin condition wasn’t due to a lack of appetite.

“When I first saw him I thought he was an old cat, due to his appearance, but he is clearly a young male.”

The grey and white long-haired cat, now named Rinder after Strictly Come Dancing’s dancing judge, was taken to the vets and checked over.

He had no microchip and scales showed he weighed just 2.1kg – around half of what he should.

An examination also revealed that he had badly matted fur, ear mites and fleas.

Becky added: “What is very strange is that an exam at the vets revealed he has no claws on any of his feet.

“Sometimes when cats are involved in traffic accidents some of their claws get broken or scuffed, but there was no sign that he had been injured in any way and the fact that they were all were missing leads me to believe someone may have de-clawed him – classed as an illegal mutilation in the UK.”