A FAMILY pet which had been knocked down by a car, died following a dispute between the RSPCA and a vet.

The vet is now considering taking legal action against the charity, claiming he is owed £2,000 in unpaid bills.

Brenda Worthing, of Hindley, called the RSPCA after seeing the cat, which was called Tilly, being hit by a car late at night.

She took the injured cat to Anrich Veterinary Hospital, in Wigan, after calling the charity's emergency number for advice, but was appalled to find the animal could not be treated because of the outstanding bill.

RSPCA operators give out log numbers to anyone calling, before contacting the duty vet in the area, and warning them of an emergency admission. All the bills are then paid by the charity.

But vet Richard Weston, who runs the Caroline Street surgery, claims the organisation still owes him for emergency work dating back to 1999, and despite his concern for the health of the animals, says he cannot afford to carry out any more work without payment.

He said: "Although all veterinary surgeries have the same arrangement to take RSPCA cases, because we have a 24-hour nurse on the premises, we seem to receive about 80 percent of the out-of-hours cases.

"I started doing free work for the RSPCA in 1981 and it seems to have been a downhill spiral since then."

Spokesman for the RSPCA, Lisa Dewhurst, said: "We have had correspondence with Anrich in the past over log numbers not matching up, and investigations into those are still under way.

"We have a policy to pay bills promptly and, as far as we know, all bills have been paid.

"Vets have a moral responsibility to relieve any suffering and we have an agreement, but not a legal binding, to pay. We are a charity and have limited funding, but we do our best to adhere to this agreement."

Mrs Worthing, of George Street, who found the dying animal ,said: "I couldn't believe the poor cat had to suffer. Surely the welfare of the animals should come before the politics behind funding."

Jane Newell, of Ennerdale Road, Hindley, only found out her cat had died, days after the accident, when Mrs Worthing put up posters all over the town.

She said: "I think it was a really nasty thing to do. Tilly was suffering - she should have been helped. At the end of the day, a life is a life." APPALLED: Brenda Worthing, who did her best to save Tilly BADLY HURT: Tilly, who was not treated because of a wrangle over vet's bills