A black and white kitten was found abandoned in a shoe box in Crawley with two bite wounds to its side.
It is believed the bites on the kitten, which was discovered in Lowe Close, were caused by a dog.
A resident found the kitten and called the RSPCA, which took the kitten to a vet in Horsham. It is being treated for its injuries.
RSPCA inspector Melissa Brett said the kitten's owners should have sought immediate medical care.
She said: "It is both cruel and an offence to allow an animal to suffer unnecessarily by failing to seek veterinary treatment and to abandon a pet in this way."
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