A cat suffered serious injuries when an air rifle was fired up its nose at close range.

Max the tabby has fragments of a pellet permanently embedded in his skull after the incident in Blackridge, West Lothian, on September 7.

An X-ray revealed parts of the pellet were deeply lodged between his eye socket and optic nerve.

Vets decided against removing the ammunition as it would mean that Max would lose an eye.

The two-year-old animal is now on an intensive course of antibiotics to try to fight off any infections.

Owner Andrew Murchison said: "He managed to make it home and when he came into the living room he lost control of his back legs, his balance seemed to go and he lost control of his bowels.

"We couldn't actually see anything wrong with him externally so we assumed he was having a seizure.

"We took him straight to the vets who carried out scans and blood tests. When we got Max home the next day blood started pouring from his nose."

Mr Murchison added: "He was transferred to the vet school in Edinburgh where he was given an X-ray and that's when we saw the metal and the pellet.

"They operated on him for over three hours and were able to remove most of the shrapnel.

"However, the main body of the pellet was so deeply lodged in between his eye socket and optic nerve that they would have to remove his eye to get it out.

"Max is not out of the woods yet and has a lot of recovering to do but we are hopeful that he's going to be OK.

"It has been a horrific experience for our family and we are keeping everything crossed."

People who own or use an air weapon will need to have a licence when the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015 comes into force on December 31.

An undercover Scottish SPCA inspector said: "It is appalling that animals such as Max are being targeted and caused such pain and suffering.

"Because the air rifle had been shot up Max's nose at close range there was no entry wound. This was a horrific crime and Max is very fortunate to still be alive.

"Disturbingly, some people seem to think it is fun to maim and kill defenceless animals with air weapons and this is completely unacceptable in a modern, civilised society."

Anyone with information is being asked to contact the Scottish SPCA animal helpline on 03000 999 999. Calls can be made anonymously.