A man who handed himself into a police station after CCTV cameras caught a man swinging a cat by its tail has been questioned and released, the RSPCA said.
Footage released by the RSPCA showed the animal attacker seemingly dancing down a road in Ramsgate with the black cat at arm's length in scenes of abuse that last for more than 30 seconds.
At one point a man, thought to be an accomplice, is struck by the spinning two-year-old cat, whose name is Mowgli.
An RSPCA spokeswoman confirmed that the 20-year-old from Ramsgate had been interviewed and released while the charity continues its investigation and it again appealed for witnesses who saw the incident to come forward.
Mowgli's owner Michelle Buchanan, an IT teacher from Ramsgate, said of the incident: "It's horrific. I can't believe anyone would do something that cruel. Mowgli is emotional. He's just distraught. He won't go out the door."
Mowgli escaped the attack without injury. But Ms Buchanan, who lives alone with her two other cats Missy and Milly, believes the incident has affected him. "When I got home he was in my bed so that he would feel secure. Now, he'll go as far as the door and turn back. He used to be outside constantly. He'd be scratching at the window."
Her other pets have been affected by the attack too, she said. "Before this happened my cats used to sit outside the house on the steps and everybody knew them. Since then none of them do that."
The RSPCA condemned the incident, which happened on October 29 at 8.30pm. Inspector Caroline Doe said: "This was a very violent, nasty attack on a cat.
"Anyone who witnessed this outside the pub must have been as shocked and appalled as we were. We are hoping that someone will recognise this man and come forward so we can investigate this fully."
The assault echoes an incident in August 2010 when bank worker Mary Bale sparked outrage on social networks after she threw a cat into a bin outside its owners' home in Coventry.