A CAT owner is warning others to be careful after his beloved cat suffered a broken paw after it was caught in an unregulated rat trap.

Jeff Speight, of Knox Court, Wickford, was shocked when he returned from holiday to find his two-year-old cat Ronnie limping.

He went to pick up the cat, but he ran away.

Mr Speight said: “It was horrible.

“He was limping with his paw near his chin.

“He was in quite a lot of pain and was crying and screaming.

“We tried to pick him up but he ran off.”

Mr Speight appealed for help to find the injured cat, and eventually managed to catch him and rushed him to Cherrydown Vets.

He continued: “Ronnie had two hairline fractures in his paw and a nasty lump where an infection has set in.

“He is on antibiotics and he is now recovering at home.”

The reason for his injuries remained a mystery, until Mr Speight noticed something odd on land opposite his house.

Mr Speight said: “It was only because one of the traps had sprung out that I noticed them.

“I took a stick and found three more traps buried just underneath the bark.

“They look like rat traps.

“It is dangerous not just for animals, but children play there.

“If a ball had rolled onto there and the children had gone to pick them up, they could have lost their fingers.”

When Mr Speight showed the vets a photo of the trap he had found, they said it was likely the cat’s injuries were caused by it.

There are tight rules on the use of traps to catch animals.

The British Pest Control Association’s code of best practice confirmed the trap was a “break back trap” and confirmed that open traps like this should not be used outside due to the high risk to non-target species.

Mr Speight said he had not reported the incident to the police, but has contacted the RSPCA.

A spokesman for the RSPCA said: “We are sorry to hear that this poor cat has been found with injuries to his leg and hope that he makes a full recovery.

“The incident has been reported and we will look into it. It appears from the images that these traps are rat traps which are commercially available to catch rats and mice and are not illegal.

“However these types of traps are unregulated and the RSPCA has been calling for better regulation of them. Many people are unaware that irresponsible use of such traps can result in injuries to non target animals including cats and wildlife and so we urge people to think carefully before using them. From an animal welfare point of view, humane deterrence and prevention is always better and further information can be found on our living with wildlife fact sheets.”