A St Albans cat has had to have its leg amputated after being shot by what is believed to be an air gun.

Billy, a 10-year-old cat, went missing for a brief period, only to come back looking as if he had been hit by a car.

It was only on closer inspection by a vet that it was found Billy had been shot.

The vet found two air rifle pellets in this cat, and it is believed they could have been from the same incident or two separate occasions.

One air rifle pellet is located inside Billy’s abdomen and could have killed him due to internal organ damage and would have resulted in a slow and agonizing death.

The second pellet, from a couple of weeks ago, hit the back leg and fractured it just above the ankle joint.

Due to the risks of complications with the surgery and the potential recovery time involved with this, it was decided to amputate the leg.

His owner, Simone Taylor, said it is “dreadful” what has happened to him.

However, she also said: “It’s great that he is still with us despite his loss of limb.

“It remains to be seen how quickly he will adjust, although quite honestly I don’t know how he will get into his favourite sunning spot on top of the shed roof.”