A DEVASTATED owner has made an emotional appeal for the return of her dead cat from a waste site so she can give her pet a proper burial.

Yasmine Khalid's pride and joy was her long-haired Persian cat named Sherekhan, which died earlier this month after getting struck by a car in Manchester Road, Whitefield.

After a days of searching, Mrs Khalid traced her beloved pet's body to waste disposal firm Viridor in Pilsworth, but was told she cannot be given it back unless a licensed contractor is hired, as her pet has been categorised as 'hazardous waste'.

Mrs Khalid, aged 55, of Bury New Road, Whitefield, claimed she should not have to pay the fee, which could be as high as £300, because she had microchipped her pet and so the cat could be traced to her.

She said: "We are very distraught and wish for our cat to be returned to us so we can bury him in a dignified way, as all pet owners do.

"Why should our cat be treated like this? My grandkids are crying because of this. We want some justice and the return of our pet."

Sherekhan went missing on July 17 and, after spending two days looking for him, Mrs Khalid heard that he had been hit by a car outside a hair salon on July 19 or 20.

After making further enquiries, Mrs Khalid discovered Bury Council environmental staff had removed the body and passed it to Viridor, which handles council waste.

Mrs Khalid claims Sherekhan was wearing a collar and was microchipped so the council could have contacted her, but did not.

The council, however, said there was no collar on the cat they found and, though they checked for a microchip, they could not find one and followed its policy of handing over the body to Viridor in a red bag, marked 'hazardous waste'.

Under environmental law, only someone who is qualified to handle that kind of waste can retrieve it on Mrs Khalid's behalf.

A Viridor spokesman said: "Unfortunately, in circumstances as sensitive as these, we still must abide by waste legislation, which dictates that once the waste enters our facility only licensed contractors can remove it off site for appropriate treatment.

"We appreciate that this is not the answer that Mrs Khalid was hoping for and we pass on our condolences at this time."