A New Westminster, B.C., family is horrified after it appears someone drenched their cat with paint thinner.

Owner Jennifer Szoke woke up from a nap to find that her two-year-old orange cat, Harley, and her neighbour's cat were covered with a paint thinner-like chemical last Friday.

Szoke says the fact there was no traces of the chemical on their paws or faces means they did not fall in the chemical accidentally.

"It wasn't that they bumped into something and fell into something. It looked like someone picked them up and dipped them into a bucket of something," she said.

Szoke says Harley, who hid on a porch for some time after the incident, tried to groom himself and ended up swallowing the toxic liquid. She bathed him with dish detergent but sought medical attention after the feline remained listless and kept licking his mouth.

"He's got some really bad burning and scaring in his mouth," she told CTV News. "It's black tongue on the top and bottom. He's burned the roof of his mouth and he's got burns down his esophagus and trachea."

The cat also has a collapsed lung. Harley is now fighting to survive in the ICU at the Canada West Veterinary Hospital in Vancouver.

Szoke's eight-year-old son, Nate, has taken to cuddling with an orange stuffed cat while his beloved pet is being treated.

Nancy Millar, an animal control officer with the New Westminster Animal Control Services, said Harley suffered more than the other cat because he wasn't attended to right away.

"The neighbours were able to bath their cat right away. Harley had the liquid on him for several hours. Cats clean themselves so he ingested it," she told ctvbc.ca.

Millar is asking people in the area to be vigilant in protecting their cats.

"The incident is a bit suspicious. If anyone notices anything strange they should call police."

New Westminster police have opened a file and are investigating the incident.

The vet bill to save the cat could range from $5,000 to $15,000, depending if it needs a tracheotomy. He is currently being sedated and fed through a tube.

"They say because he's young he has youth on his side and that he could pull through," Szoke said. "I still have hope."

To donate to Harley's vet bills click here