A cat is set to have his eye removed after being attacked while sleeping in his flowerpot bed.
Around a year ago somebody posted a picture of the cat in a local Facebook group in Reepham.
They had seen him living rough in their garden and wondered if he had a home.
He was snoozing in a nearby flowerpot at the time of the attack (Image: Kath Harrold)
When no owners emerged, a team of neighbours living in nearby flats agreed to feed him and playfully called him Hobocat.
Soon after, one of these guardians named Kath Harrold, noticed he was "on three legs" and believed he had been hit by a car.
She borrowed a cat trap to catch him and took him to the vet where he was neutered and patched up ready to be returned to the community.
"He slowly started to trust people and now he is so loving," Ms Harrold said.
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"He sits on the pavement greeting the early morning dog walkers and chats to everyone.
"He sleeps in the plant pot but we bought an insulated igloo with a self-heating blanket for the winter and he loved that."
His progress was disrupted at around 11.30pm on Sunday when Ms Harrold heard the "dreadful noise" of Hobocat being "attacked by an out-of-town tomcat" in his flowerpot bed.
Hobocat's eye will be removed later this week (Image: Kath Harrold)
She sought advice from another vet who said his eye was so badly hurt that it needed to be removed.
She said she was quoted £1,449 for the surgery which has been scheduled for Friday.
Although he will always remain "a community cat" with "friends everywhere", Ms Harrold has agreed to give Hobocat a permanent home and has launched a GoFundMe page to help pay for the surgery.
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