A cat has been found with its head and tail "sliced cleanly off" in Belvedere.

The owners of Tosh, a small black female, were left fearing for the worst when she disappeared from her home on March 26.

Then, on April 1, they were told the torso of a cat matching Tosh's description had been discovered in King Harold's Way and taken to a local vets.

Tosh was rehomed by Bexley and Dartford Branch of the Cat's Protection League after being found as part of a litter in Gravesend.

The gruesome find prompted the charity to warn cat lovers of the 'horrifying news' - sparking panic in the community.

A post on the charity's Facebook site said: "She has been missing for five days and today it was discovered that she had been found - but was unidentifiable due to her head and tail being sliced cleanly off.

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A black cat which may be similar to Tosh

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"Her owners confirmed it was her at the vets, down to one white hair on her side.

"This is an ugly and terrifying crime - and it has happened in this area before.

"Please get all your cats in at night. Tosh was black but it could happen to any cat."

Following an investigation the RSPCA confirmed that the brutal act was, in fact, carried out by hungry foxes and other wildlife.

An RSPCA spokesman said: "We see this sort of scenario very regularly when a fox finds a cat that is already dead that it would eat those parts first – I don’t know why, perhaps they’re the tastiest bits but this sounds very much like that.

"This must have been very upsetting for the cat's owners.

"However, we want to reassure pet owners that thankfully acts of deliberate violence against dead cats are rare and thorough research has shown that these kind of injuries are caused by wildlife after death."

Both the Cat's Protection League and the RSPCA have confirmed that despite the news breaking on April 1 this was not an April Fool.