A distraught mum had to explain to her four-year-old son that their beloved kitten was fighting for his life after being poisoned.

Kay Dickinson took five-month-old King Jaffa Tutu to the vets on Wednesday after he had been suffering vomiting and diarrhoea.

Tests showed there were chemicals in his blood stream, most likely to be anti-freeze, and he also had acute renal failure.

Miss Dickinson fears he was poisoned on purpose as she’s heard of a number of other cases nearby.

The ginger tom was on a drip overnight before being allowed home on Thursday where he is expected to make a full recovery.

He responded well to the treatment and the vet said because he is young and strong he should be fine.

Miss Dickinson, 32, of Alma Street, Sheerness, says her son Morgan, who named the cat, is very upset by what happened.

She said: “Morgan didn’t understand why the kitten wasn’t coming home. He couldn’t understand why someone would want to hurt his kitten. We told him there are some bad people out there that don’t like cats.”

Jaffa, as he’s known for short, does go out but doesn’t venture far so Miss Dickinson is concerned for other pets in the area.

She has another three cats.

“It sickens me and I think it’s disgusting,” she said. “There are more humane ways to deal with unwanted cats on your property.

"How do you tell a four-year-old that someone is that cruel to poison a cat because they don’t want it in their garden.”

The incident was reported to police and referred to the RSPCA, which is investigating.

A spokesman for the charity said: “It is not possible to say yet whether this was a deliberate poisoning or whether this cat perhaps accessed anti-freeze which was put down for some alternative reason.

"The RSPCA always advises people to be careful when using anti-freeze and take care when using, storing and disposing of it.”

Anyone who suspects their cat has been poisoned by anti-freeze should contact a vet immediately.

“The sooner the cat is treated, the better their chances of surviving,” the spokesman said.