A MUCH-loved family pet has used up one of its nine lives after consuming 43 rubber bands.

Tiger the cat secretly stole the bobbles belonging to owner Rebecca Gordon and her two daughters Chloe, 10, and seven-year-old Charlotte.

It was only when the eight-year-old tortoiseshell became seriously ill and was taken to The Minster Veterinary Practice in Malton that vets discovered a large, tangled ball of hair ties in her abdomen.

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It is one of the most unusual cases vets at the practice have ever encountered, and they are warning owners to keep hair bands out of reach of cats because swallowing even just one could have potentially fatal consequences.

Tiger, who lives with the Gordon family at their home in Malton, is thought to have been stealing hair ties over a period of weeks, or even months, and eating them unbeknown to her owners.

Tiger started being sick regularly so was taken to the Malton branch of Minster Vets, where she was given an anti-sickness injection. Shortly afterwards, she passed two hair bands in her poo and started being sick again, so returned to the practice. A further examination and an X-ray at Minster Vets’ main hospital in York the following day revealed a mass of a mystery material in her abdomen, requiring emergency surgery to remove it.

York Press: Tiger the cat with Minster Vets clinical director Sarah Ford, Tiger’s owner Rebecca Gordon and her two children two daughters Chloe, 10, and seven-year-old CharlotteTiger the cat with Minster Vets clinical director Sarah Ford, Tiger’s owner Rebecca Gordon and her two children two daughters Chloe, 10, and seven-year-old Charlotte (Image: VetPartners)

Clinical director Sarah Ford admitted she was stunned when she removed the ball and discovered it was made up of 43 hair ties.

Dr Ford said: “I once had a case of a cat eating 10 hair ties but I couldn’t believe it when we counted 43. They were all tangled and knotted together so had created a big clump, and her stomach was so full there was hardly room for anything else.

“Tiger is a lovely cat and is fortunate that her family really care and brought her to us when they suspected something was wrong. She has been incredibly lucky as the danger would have been if they had passed into her intestine and caused a blockage which would have been extremely serious.

“Our advice to owners is to keep hair bobbles, hair ties and ribbons well away from cats, preferably in a drawer, as they are clearly very tempting to play with, chew and swallow.”

Ms Gordon had assumed her daughters were losing the hair ties as she never dreamed Tiger was stealing them, and she has joined Minster Vets’ call for owners to be extra cautious about leaving them where their cats can access them.

The family returned to Minster Vets in Middlecave Road, where Tiger had a final check-up, and to thank the veterinary team for their care.

Ms Gordon said: “It was such a shock when we found out how many she had eaten, and the girls were distraught while she was in hospital.

“The team at Minster Vets were brilliant and we couldn’t have asked for more as they rang me at every stage before and after surgery. Having pet insurance is very important when something like this goes wrong as Tiger needed surgery and the cost was covered.”