A TILBURY family have warned pet owners to beware after a pet appears to have been the victim of a strange assault.

Earlier today the family, who have asked not to be named, let their pet cat out of its home on Mulberry Way in Tilbury.

Forty-five minutes later, around 4.50pm they received a message from a neighbour saying the cat had been seen in a distressed condition

When they went out and found the cat, they discovered one of its legs appears to have been shaved.

There are no other wounds but the family are baffled about what happened, saying: "It doesn't look as if this could have happened by accident, it's a clean shave around the leg – almost as if it was being prepared for an injection or something.

"It's very worrying and we hope that the same thing isn't happening to other cats in the area."