A PET owner who volunteered at a local cat shelter has urged the public to get their pets insured after spending thousands on his heroic cats.

Steve Nicholls, from Taunton, took home two of the pets from the shelter and has only recently taken out insurance after years of vets bills.

His first cat, Sootica, was rescued in June 2008 after being found in a box in the middle of a field. Sootica had a serious infection which had caused her eye to swell to the size of a golf ball.

Steve told the Gazette: “Her eye was so bad it really needed to be removed, but the vet said that this poor little soul was too weak to withstand the operation and would probably die during the procedure.”

Luckily, Sootica survived and when she was four months old Steve took her home.

The next year Steve adopted another kitten, Amber. His second cat had struggled from birth, being abandoned and one of its siblings dying.

The weak Amber survived the tough early days despite refusing to eat and picking up a virus. Soon, Steve realised he was not caring for Amber on his own.

“I began to notice Sootica would go to her aid when she called and Sootica would push against Amber to guide her to me or the food or litter tray,” Steve said.

Sootica soon started to teach Amber to jump onto the window sill and held the younger cat there so she wouldn’t fall off.

Steve added: “One day I was amazed by what I saw. I had put down two dishes of prawns and she guided Amber to the food.

“Amber’s head shake was playing up and I saw Sootica put her paw across Amber’s head and hold it steady while she ate. At times she would lift a prawn to Amber’s mouth to start her off.”

In February 2014, Amber was taken ill and she lost weight dramatically. Tests were taken and she was put on a drip, but nothing seemed to help.

A last ditch treatment was attempted to save Amber’s life, but at 12.08am on March 1, 2014, Amber passed away in Steve’s arms. She was four years and ten months old.

Steve later added: “Don’t fall into a sense of false security as I did. I did not have any insurance on my cats. Most of us assume any emergency would be due to a road accident or similar, and Amber and Sootica were both indoor cats so what could possibly happen to them?

“Amber went into hospital on the Tuesday. For the treatment she had until the time she died on the Saturday, the bill exceeded £1,200.

“Please insure your pets. I now have Sootica insured because it taught me a lesson I can assure you.”