Outraged cat owners are terrified a phantom shaver is on the loose after their pets came home with bizarre markings cut out of their fur.

Some Chatham residents are now keeping their beloved pets locked indoors amid fears they are being targeted by people planning to steal them.

Kerry Ryan, 50, from Chatham, said her cat Dennis used to go out all the time but now she is too scared to let him out after he came home with an area around his back legs completely shaved.

And she is worried the shaving was a way of targeting the five-year-old feline to be stolen.

"I will be keeping him in just in case it's part of a plan to steal cats, as he is white and has two different coloured eyes so he is quite rare."

She said seeing him like that was very upsetting.

"I am so angry and deeply shocked that people can do this kind of thing to a cat or any animal.

"I couldn't believe that's what had happened at first, but now I have heard about other people who have had the same experience.

"It really makes me wonder what kind of world my grandchildren will have to live in."

In fact, the shaving incidents seem to be more common than the owners first realised, with reports of similar happening around Medway since Christmas.

Victoria Griffiths, 29, of Silver Tree Close, Walderslade, was horrified when, just days before Christmas, her beloved tabby came back from his adventures with a large bald patch.

The 10-year-old tabby appeared with a huge, strangely-shaped patch of fur cut away, leaving his bare skin exposed.

"I was so angry that some nasty human had decided to shave my cat," she said. "It was very distressing."

George, who is 10, is a rescue cat and Victoria says he was already nervous around people.

"When he came back in he wouldn't let me near him. He was terrified.

"I was worried they might have done something else to him. Now he is now even more skittish towards people but his fur is starting to grow back."

Owners are being urged to keep a look out and to report suspicious activity.

A spokesman from the Medway-based charity Animal Lost and Found said: "We are definitely keeping an eye on the cases that are appearing across Kent.

"We are urging people to be vigilant if you see someone acting suspiciously around animals and to log it with the RSPCA."

Call the RSPCA's national call centre line on 0300 1234 999.