“HE was given the name Captain by the volunteers, who felt it only right he go with a name given to him by people who loved him.”

A Somerset charity has issued a heartbreaking call to anyone with pets they no longer want to contact as many rescues as possible – rather than abandoning them.

Cats Protection Glastonbury and Wells has told the story of Captain, a cat found in the area, left by his former owners when they moved house.

“We were alerted to this sweet old boy after the new owner of the property saw him and was concerned about his health,” a spokesperson said. “She couldn’t sleep all last night worrying about him and called us.”

It seemed the previous owners of the property had left, without Captain, for a new home as he was “elderly and had lived there his whole life”.

Volunteers from the organisation scoured the area in the hope of finding the lost cat and, thanks to a chance encounter with a farmer, they did.

“Something in their gut told them he was just a little way up the road at a small holdings where other cats were seen,” the spokesperson said.

“Luck turned out to be on their side and the farmer arrived just as they were going to leave a note and when checking one of his sheds he realised that the cat was there, curled up in a pile of straw.”

Captain was taken to Wells Vets, where he received a heartbreaking diagnosis

They rushed Captain to Wells Vets, who delivered heartbreaking news.

“Some time in the past few weeks this poor old boy had been most likely hit by a car,” the spokesperson went on.

“This had caused spinal damage and the resulting nerve damage had left him incontinent.

“He was unsteady on his feet and had bald patches and burns caused by urine as he was unable to control his bladder.

“His ears were full of mites and deformed, likely through years of untreated mite infestation and ear infections.

“And all through it, despite everything, he purred.”

They said Captain was given food, wrapped in a blanket and “given all the love he could ever want”.

But they added: “Sadly there was nothing that could be done for him.

“He was given the name Captain by the volunteers who felt it only right he go with a name given to him by people who loved him.

“They stayed at his side, showering him with affection and telling him how loved he was and how sorry they were that people had let him down so badly.

“He went to sleep peacefully, a much kinder fate than being left alone out in the cold.”

Captain passed away with volunteers by his side

Now, the charity has urged people to rehome their animals rather than abandoning them, potentially leaving them to a fate like Captain’s.

“If you do not want your pets anymore, or can no longer keep them, please do not dump them,” they added.

“Do not leave them to this fate, to the pain and suffering that Captain had to endure.

“Contact a rescue, get them on as many waiting lists as possible. Don’t just cast them aside as if they meant nothing.

“We are glad that we were able to be there for Captain and were able to offer him love and a peaceful ending but it never should have come to that.

“Rest in peace Captain, you will never be forgotten.”

For more information on Cats Protection Glastonbury & Wells, log on to www.cats.org.uk/glastonbury.