A cat's head swelled to twice its normal size after being strangled in a snare on a Colchester allotment.
Ginger tom Max was caught round the neck in the twine noose at the allotments on Bergholt Road, Braiswick.
A couple walking their dog discovered Max, cut off the snare -- believed to have been set for rabbits -- and took him to Bergholt Road vets. The thin and dehydrated cat was treated before being reuniting with his owner Melody Meredith, of Bergholt Road.
Vet Melanie Tyler said Max had probably been in the trap for a day and would not have survived much longer.
RSPCA officer Insp Jim Farr said: "Snares can be legally used in an approved manner but problems arise when people don't conform to the regulations and sometimes they adapt snares that are legal to make them illegal.
"The RSPCA are trying to stamp out this practice and trying to outlaw all snares because they cause massive suffering."
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