Police are trying to track down the owner of a lion cub that was abandoned in a cage in Utrecht province.

A jogger discovered the baby big cat, believed to be around five months old, in Tienhoven, Stichtse Vecht, on Sunday morning.

Local vet Peter Klaver, who helped police collect the lion, said: ‘The cage was not very strong and there was a danger the animal could have escaped, but we eventually managed to get the lion in its cage into the car.’

The cub was taken to the Stichting Leeuw centre in Anna Paulowna, near Den Helder, where it will be looked after while investigators try to find out who dumped it in the field.

‘The lion has been collected and taken to a new home,’ said a police spokesman. ‘Further enquiries are being made into the lion’s background.

Robert Kruijff, who runs Stichting Leeuw, said it appeared to have been raised in captivity. ‘It’s possible that the animal was taken from its mother after a few months and kept here as a pet. But after a few months it’s a pretty big animal. We’ve never seen anything like this before.’

The food and imported goods watchdog NVWA is carrying out the investigation, but anyone with information about the lion cub should call police on 0900 8844.