A kitten is fighting for her life after the tiny animal was thrown from a moving car "like a piece of rubbish", the RSPCA says.
The cat, which has been named Daisy, is critically ill and receiving vet care for her injuries, and its tail will need to be amputated following the "shocking" incident in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs., on Saturday morning.
The animal, thought to be 10 to 12 weeks old, was seen hitting the road and rolling over a few times when, according to witnesses, it was thrown from a car driving towards Alsager just before 12pm.
Another driver had to swerve to avoid hitting the female tabby kitten, pulled over to find it on the roadside with severe injuries, and rushed it to a nearby vet who then alerted the RSPCA for help, StokeonTrentLive reports.
The RSPCA has released a photo of the injured kitten and an image of a dark blue car as part of its investigation.
Inspector Caren Goodman-James said: “This is such a shocking incident. It is so upsetting to think anyone would consider doing this to an animal.
“The car was on Audley Road just before the junction with Merelake Road and travelling towards Alsager from the A500 junction when Daisy was thrown out of the window.
“The poor kitten was seen hitting the road and rolled over a few times before stopping.
"The witness in the car behind had to swerve to avoid hitting her and initially thought she was a piece of rubbish that had been thrown out of the car.
"It was only when the kitten moved her head up did they realise it was an animal and stopped their car to help."
She added: “We are so grateful to the driver that stopped to help poor Daisy.
"This poor kitten was just thrown to the kerb like a piece of rubbish.
"I have dealt with incidents of animals being dumped and abandoned before but this is extreme.
"It is very lucky that this little kitten survived.
“The vet is hopeful that Daisy will pull through but the next 36 hours are crucial."
Ms Goodman-James said the kitten has a pull injury to its tail, meaning it will need to be amputated.
It also suffered a lower jaw fracture and head trauma.
She said there may be more damage but until the cat is fully stable officials won’t know the full extent of its injuries.
Ms Goodman-James added: “We are hopeful there are other people who know what happened or have footage of it which could help us track down the person that did this to poor Daisy.
“I would urge anyone who may know where this kitten has come from to call our inspector appeal line as soon as possible on 0300 123 8018.”
The RSPCA said it sees a peak in abandonments during the summer months, but the number of incidents has soared as the lockdown was eased.
During three months since lockdown began, the RSPCA said it has received reports about 3,492 abandoned animals - about 40 calls a day - including 1,165 cats.
