A CAT charity had the purr-fect present when an anonymous donor left two bin bags full of rare limited edition Dinky toy cars on its doorstep.

Staff and volunteers at Lydney’s Cats Protection shop have described the kind-hearted benefactor as ‘the cat’s whiskers’ after they were stunned to find the ‘generous’ gift waiting at the back door when they arrived for work last Friday (June 15).

And they have valued the 60-car collection, still all in their original boxes and on their stands as worth at least £450, with collectors already clamouring to buy them after the store posted them online.

“I thought they had some value when we found them, but didn’t realise they were worth quite as much until we researched the prices at the weekend,” said store manager Debbie Brooks.

“It was quite wonderful to see they were worth a small fortune. A man came in this morning and paid £90 for three of them without blinking. He was thrilled to get them.

“The cars are worth around £20 to £40 generally, and apparently four of them are extremely rare.

“Ninety per cent are limited edition and they’re all in mint condition, so they are hugely collectable.

“And the fact that they were donated anonymously has made us feel very special at Lydney Cats Protection. It’s a wonderful gesture. We put them on our shop Facebook page and there’s beeen a huge response, from people wanting to buy to those giving us advice, saying ‘do you know what you’ve got?’

“Whoever left them surely had some idea they were worth a bit of money and it’s a great boost for the charity.

“If they want to remain anonymous, that’s fine, but we’d really like to thank them personally by writing a letter.

“On behalf of the shop and the cats, I’d like to say a huge thank you for donating these wonderful items to us.

“All out supporters are important to us, with our work rescuing and helping cats costing tens of thousands of pounds per year in the Forest of Dean.

“But the fact that this superb gift was left anonymously has touched us all, and the benefactor can rest assured we’ll do our best to get a good price for them.”

Store helper Gill Taber added: “It’s an incredibly kind-hearted gift and one that will be put to good use.

“The money will be really handy in helping our cats, such as a distressed stray I trapped last week, which was in a sorry state. I called him Warrior because he was such a mess.

‘He was a stray in poor condition with bad skin and had suffered an injured eye and was surviving by scavenging.

“I caught him the first night after baiting the cage with tuna, and now he’s had an operation on his eye at Sundean Vets in Lydney and is recovering well, with all his care paid for by Cat’s Protection.

“We’ve already had some interest in him and he’ll be going to a good home soon, so the anonymous donor can rest assured their gift will be put to good use.”

For more information, go to Lydney Cats Protection Charity Shop on Facebook.