A FAMILY cat is recovering after being shot by a high velocity gun capable of killing a deer.

Purdy, a 12-year-old cat, who belongs Dave and Gail Berry, of Grovebury Road, Brundall, was shot in a field behind their family home last Thursday.

The cat’s leg was shattered and vets thought at first that Purdy would have to be put to sleep or have his leg amputated, but he is now recovering from an operation to repair the bone and sew up the bullet holes.

James Tattersall, a veterinary surgeon at The Grove surgery, in Fakenham, said: “The cat appears to have been shot in the right back leg from behind with a high-velocity rifle.

“The entry wound from the bullet is about 1cm in diameter and goes straight through the muscle and through the middle of its femur.

“Had the bullet have been an inch to the side, it would have gone through the abdomen into the cat’s chest cavity, and it would be dead.”

Mrs Berry, who has three adult children, said the family had been worried sick about their pet, who was found by a dog walker who then called the number on Purdy’s collar.

She said: “There are a lot of children around here and, if a child had been playing in the fields, they could easily have been hit.

“I don’t know whether or not whoever shot the gun was aiming at Purdy, possibly thinking he was a fox, but he has a lot of white on him.”

She added: “He’s more than just a cat; he’s a member of the family.

The cat’s treatment has so far cost �3,400, and police are investigating the shooting.