THEY are furry, friendly, cuddly animals known to curl up on your lap or stretch out by the fire.

But it seems even the most adorable domestic cat hides an inner tiger waiting to be unleashed.

As reported this week, Helena Silver witnessed the devastating consequences when a ginger tom savagely attacked her in her own bedroom.

The horrified library assistant suffered a dozen painful bites when the animal repeatedly sunk its teeth into her hand after sneaking through her open window in Avenue Road, Southampton.

The 48-year-old, who was trying to prevent it attacking her cat Gem, spent six days in Southampton General Hospital.

Her arm swelled up to nearly twice its size and was put in plaster while she was given an intravenous antibiotic drip amid fears that she would develop blood poisoning.

It sparked calls for the ferocious feline – thought to be a stray – to be caged after accusations that it has attacked three other cats over the past six months and is roaming as far away as Bursledon.

But animal experts moved to ease the panic – stressing that such vicious attacks are highly unusual.

Terry Grainger runs Cottage Cattery in Horton Heath, Eastleigh, where he welcomes more than 30 moggies a day.

He has never been bitten in 15 years and added: “Biting is very unusual behaviour.

“We deal with lots of cats here and sometimes you get scratched, but it is usually when they are playing.

“Even when they fight each other they usually use their claws.”

“They are not usually confrontational and would only attack if they feel under threat.”

“But I could understand it would cause a lot of damage.

“They are part of the big cat family and you see what they can do to pigeons and rats.

“But they normally keep that behaviour for hunting.”

He says that strays that have left their homes can eventually become part feral, and those descending from a litter born in the wild and unused to humans could display more aggressive behaviour.

He also pointed out that unneutered tom cats are also potentially more likely to be aggressive, due to their hormones.

RSPCA spokeswoman Katya Mira also said it was unusual but that the potential for attacks are built into their natural biology and behaviour.

She said: “It could be that they feel under threat, that hormones or seasonal changes are influencing their behaviour, or even that there is some kind of underlying medical condition that is causing pain or anxiety.”

She urged owners to neuter their cats – unless vets flag up specific health or welfare reasons – and added: “In males, neutering can reduce urine marking and roaming.

“It also prevents females coming into season, when they may attract unwanted male attention, become pregnant or have false pregnancies.

“If people are concerned about their cat's behaviour it is important that they get their pet checked by a vet first to rule out any form of illness or injury that could be causing it.

“Their vet can then refer them to a qualified animal behaviour expert if necessary.”

Mr Grainger urged people to report suspected strays and added: “People don’t think twice about it if it’s a dog, because they are bigger and look more aggressive, but if it turns out to be a stray or it has been neglected it needs to be dealt with.”

The RSPCA collects sick or injured stray cats, but due to limited resources, healthy strays are not normally rounded up as many are later found to be owned and were just roaming.

Suspected strays are also referred to Cats Protection or Pets Located which can help reunite them with their owners.