A Barrow cat owner who is fundraising to pay for her pet’s operation has raised over £500 in a week.

Fifteen-year-old rescue cat called Sam needs an operation to remove his eyeball after sustaining an injury.

His owner Sonia Jeffers has set up a Go Fund Me Page to help pay for the surgery and medication Sam needs.

The vet believes Sam caught his eyeball with his claw and cut it. After trying eye drops and other solutions to heal the wound, his eye now needs to be removed.

Sonia and her husband Graham met Sam at Animal Welfare Furness on Rawlinson Street last December.

Due to his age and being on regular medication for an overactive thyroid gland, no-one else had shown any interest in providing a loving home.

 Sonia said: “I was looking for another cat as I lost my beloved Chloe, who we had had for 13 years, in June. We felt sorry for Sam - nobody wanted him. We met him and fell in love with him and just wanted to give him a loving home to see out the rest of his days.”

Sam’s owners said he is ‘such a loving cat’ who enjoys nose rubs and will nuzzle against their heads for hours. He also loves a belly tickle and is a bit of an attention seeker.

“Unfortunately, he has done something to his eye,” Sonia said. “We tried eye drops but they didn't work so he needs to have it out. The fundraising will mean a lot as his eye looks bad now and it will give him a better quality of life.”

Sonia wanted to say a massive thank you to the ‘lovely’ vet, Charlotte at Furness Vets in Dalton, who got in touch with Animal Welfare Furness to see if they could help with the costs.

She said: “They kindly agreed to pay half, which means I will have some money left over to go towards his medication for a hyperactive thyroid.

“Thank you to all the kind people who donated - we really appreciate it.”

You can donate to Sam's care here.