Escaped Savanna cat in Norfolk found in plant pot in back garden

An escaped big cat believed to have been roaming the countryside for two months has been captured after being found with injuries in a plant pot in a back garden.

Kevin Murphy, of Norfolk Wildlife Rescue, has been trying to track down the Savannah cat since it was spotted three weeks ago near Bramerton, south of Norwich.

The feline is native to sub-Saharan Africa and it had been on the loose since escaping from its home in May.

Murphy, who used a net to catch it safely in Bramerton, said the owner had been confirmed as living in the NR1 postcode area of Norwich, about four miles away, and that the animal had been taken to a vet with a broken paw.

The Savannah cat is a cross between a serval and a domestic cat and it has brown spots and pointy ears.

It was first seen in a field between the A146 Loddon Road and Framingham Lane on 23 June.

Tom Baker, 27, who spotted the cat last month, likened it to a "small leopard" when he saw it from a distance.

The June sighting generated national headlines.

Murphy said the cat had been microchipped so the owner was able to confirm it was theirs and that its name was Blaze.

Murphy added the Savannah had a broken right paw and a wound on its chest following its adventures in the Norfolk countryside.

Owners of serval cats and first generation Savannah cats require a Dangerous Wild Animals (DWA) licence to keep them.

However, this cat was believed to be in the F2 category, which would mean its owner did not require a licence.

According to a recent freedom of information request by Born Free, a charity that works to protect wild animals, there are two Savannah cats and three servals registered as being kept at private addresses in South Norfolk.

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