A cat that was hit by a train has been hailed a “miracle cat" after he looks set to make a full recovery, thanks to the help of an animal charity.

One-year-old Jay from Ilford, Essex, lost one of his nine lives after wandering onto the train tracks near his home and losing a leg during an accident.

His owner, Darren Danks, 45, said:

“Jay likes to explore but never ventures too far from home. It was really out of character for him to go missing so I was really worried. When several hours had gone by I knew something was wrong."

“I took a look outside and could see Jay lying on the other side of our fence. I called out his name and he slowly began to hobble over. I was horrified when I noticed one of his back legs was missing."

The cat has been hailed a “miracle cat" after surviving all his injuries (PDSA)

Despite his horrific injuries, Jay managed to jump a 9ft fence and return to his garden.

He was taken to the Ilford PDSA Pet Hospital in critical condition.

The charity's vet Lucy Gardiner said:

“His right hind-leg was severed from the accident and x-rays revealed he had fractured what was left of it, as well as his tail.

“Luckily tests showed no evidence of internal injuries so we placed him on a drip and intravenous pain relief to stabilize him, then we needed to get him into theatre for emergency surgery."

His right hind-leg and tail were amputated and he was kept in hospital for a week but has now made an incredible recovery.

Mr Danks said:

“Life without Jay doesn't bear thinking about, he means the world to us and is such an important part of our family. My wife is deaf and Jay is an enormous source of comfort to her—he always picks us up when we are feeling down."

“We want to thank everyone at PDSA for saving his life. They never gave up on Jay, even when we thought all was lost. We've donated what we can towards Jay's treatment, but I don't think I can ever repay them for bringing my boy back from the brink."

“I couldn't believe he had survived being hit by a train."