Nim comes home as one of his alleged attackers is held by animal control

Tessa-Rose Midgley is more than glad to have her cat Nimbus back after they were both attacked by a pair of dogs. Photo / Warren Buckland

Tessa-Rose Midgley is "stoked" to have her cat Nimbus back home from the vet after it was attacked by two dogs a little over two weeks ago.

"Nim" was set upon by a pair of what Midgley thought were Staffordshire bull terriers and needed treatment for extensive bruising and other external wounds, as well as two hernias and some liver damage.

But he is back home with Midgely in Camberley, Hastings now and she couldn't be more thankful.

"So stoked he's home, we had the best night last night," she said the day after picking Nim up from VetsOne in Hastings.

Midgley said the cat was "not completely out of the woods yet," but he has recovered enough that the vets are happy she will be able to manage him from home.

"Just looking at him, he's a lot more spritely," she said, noting Nim is doing all the things a healthy cat should be doing.

Nimbus is loving being back at home, and slowly getting back to his normal ways. Photo / Warren Buckland

But he does get spooked by any loud noises coming from outside.

"His eyes go very big, very quickly and he sort of scurries around behind my leg," Midgley said.

When she came home from work last Friday afternoon, Midgley noticed one of the dogs she recognised, sitting on the kerb.

She called up the Hastings District Council's Animal Control team, and an officer was able to get the dog to "go home" to the house she suspected it belonged to.

The officer took the dog away after no one at the property answered the door, however Midgley said she saw the owner come out of the house once the officer had left.

Midgley said Animal Control was able to get hold of the property owner, who told them it wasn't their dog.

Midgley said she would be really upset to see the dog returned to that property with no clarified owner.

Nim's external wounds have healed up a lot since the attack, but Tessa-Rose Midgley says he's not out of the woods yet. Photo / Warren Buckland

Midgley wants to see Animal Control take some initiative, and see the situation from the perspective that the community is in danger because of the dog.

Hastings District Council Animal Control regulatory solutions manager John Payne said the offending dog is currently being held at their centre.

He said the matter is still being investigated and there hasn't been enough information to locate the other dog.

The bill for Nim's treatment totalled $3700, which was generously paid by the owner of the For The Love Of Animals op shop.

Two people also sent $100 straight to the vet's bank account, while the Givealittle page Midgley set up has attracted $1172 in donations to date.

That will all go towards ongoing care for Nim, with the hernias set to be fixed after he has had more time to recover.

Midgley said she was blown away that the bill had already been paid, and really thankful to the wider community as well.

"Faith in humanity restored."