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Oscar the cat is no ordinary moggy – he’s the first in the world to be fitted with bionic paws.

Nine months ago, Oscar lost both of his back legs to a combine harvester whilst out playing in a corn field. He was discovered by his owner Michael Nolan barely conscious, who took him straight to veterinary surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick.

As cats can have a good quality of life with only three legs, but not with two, Mr Nolan was advised that unless they tried a groundbreaking operation to attach two prosthetic feet, Oscar would have to be put to sleep.

During the surgery, metal rods were attached to Oscar’s legs. They protrude from the skin, and allow the attachment of prosthetic paws. Oscar’s new feet were specially made to be flexible, which allows him to climb, run and walk, but they are not designed for outdoor use.

The procedure cost thousands, but luckily Mr Nolan had taken out cat insurance , which covered most of the costs.

Fitzparick has stated that he is not experimenting on what can be done with household pets, and will only operate if the animal’s quality of life would improve drastically and it would not be left in pain.

He commented: “I know where to draw the line. Animals are sentient creatures, with needs and wants.

“Doing a procedure just because it can be done is not ethical. I’ll only do it if the perceived outcome improves the animal’s quality of life.”

Oscar is thought to be the first cat in the world to undergo such an operation, but Mr Fitzpatrick has forged ahead with other pets. In a recent similar operation he attached a prosthetic paw to Storm, a Belgian Shepherd, and worked with a plastic surgeon to help fuse the dog’s skin with a titanium rod implanted into its foreleg. The operation was such a success, Storm has recently had to have a new prosthetic paw fitted as he wore his old one out. Again, the cost of the operation ran into thousands, but was mostly met by the owner’s pet insurance .

Fitzpatrick has been so successful with his pioneering operations, he is the set to be the star of a new BBC series called The Bionic Vet.