A woman who microwaved her neighbour's 10-week-old kitten has been sentenced to 168 days in prison.

Gina Robins, 31, of Salisbury Avenue, Torquay, cooked the cat to death after a row with owner Sarah Knutton, before sending her a text message calling the crime "karma".

Dutton, who thought Robins was using her microwave to heat up baby food, told magistrates she heard a loud "popping" sound, followed by a "horrendous screeching noise".

Robins was found guilty of the crime in November, despite claiming that the kitton had been shut in the microwave by other cats.

A vet said that the kitten, which was found dead with its claws clenched in fear and red ears, would have "suffered prior to death".

At the sentencing, held at Torquay Magistrates Court on Wednesday, Robins was also disqualified from owning an animal for the next 10 years.