RSPCA reveals the animals it’s rescued from the strangest and most surprising situations last year.
Animals get themselves up to all sorts - and nobody sees that more than the RSPCA’s team of rescuers.
In 2021, 281,390 incidents were reported to the charity’s frontline teams via its emergency hotline - 44,998 in the South East - including helping lots of animals who got themselves into rather a-moo-sing situations. Luckily, they all had happy endings. Here the RSPCA reveals its top rescues of 2021 across the South East:
1. Animal rescuers from the fire service and RSPCA used hydraulics to prise a tree and concrete post apart to free a trapped deer. The rescue team was called to woodland in Reading, Berkshire, on 14 February after the stricken fallow deer was spotted. RSPCA animal rescue officer Rachel Edwards said: “I suspect the deer was running along the fenceline and thought she could squeeze through but misjudged the gap and got stuck!” Firefighters used hydraulic equipment to push against the post and widen the gap so they could carefully wriggle the deer free. Thankfully she wasn’t injured so was released back into the wild.
2. A fox cub found himself in a fix after getting stuck fast inside a metal duck-shaped planter! RSPCA animal rescue officer Brian Milligan was called to Faversham, Kent, on 13 April. He said: “Fox cubs are incredibly inquisitive and that does mean they end up in rather strange situations sometimes. This poor little cub had got himself wedged inside a metal wire, duck-shaped planter in someone’s garden! It took a while to cut him free and his mum was nowhere to be seen so we took him to our wildlife centre nearby to be reared before being released when he’s old enough.”
3. A pigeon was feeling blue after falling into a tray of paint at a Surrey police station! RSPCA rescuer Nat Kitchin was called to Guildford Police Station on 5 May by the decorators after the pigeon got more than he bargained for. Nat said: “The decorators were painting the cells and found a pigeon who’d managed to get locked in. In his panic to escape he fell into a tray of blue paint and ended up in a right mess!” Nat caught the bird and took him to Wildlife Air nearby where, thankfully, staff were able to clean the water-based paint off his feathers. Once he was clean and had been given the all-clear he was released back into the wild. “He’d definitely done his time!” Nat added.
4. The RSPCA was called in to help after a young fox was found hiding under the passenger seat of a classic Alfa Romeo. The car had been driven from Hove in East Sussex to a garage where mechanics found the little fox curled up under the seat and called the charity for help. Inspector Kate Barnes responded to the call on 18 May. Kate caught him, took him to a suitable area nearby and released him back into the wild. Kate said: “We have had lots of rain recently so it may have been that he was looking for some shelter and didn’t realise he was about to be taken on a trip through Sussex!”
5. A little fox needed help after getting her head stuck in a concrete mosquito trap in a West Sussex garden. Inspector Kate Barnes was called to a home in Littlehampton on 15 June after the cub got stuck while seeking food. Kate said: “The concrete was very thick and strong so I called for assistance from West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service’s technical rescue team. They managed to break the concrete using spreaders but had to be incredibly careful not to injure the little fox in the process. We popped her in a cage and checked her over but, thankfully, she didn’t appear to have any injuries from her ordeal. I decided she was well enough to release in the garden so she could find her way back to her den and recover in the comfort of her own home!” Wendy Bradmore, who found the fox, said: “We heard a noise in the garden at around 2am so we wonder if that’s when she became stuck. She must have been so thirsty after being stuck like that for more than five hours - poor little thing.”
6. This poor grass snake ended up in a tight spot after being shut underneath a fire door at a hotel in Dorking, Surrey. RSPCA rescuer Chloe Wilson was called to help him after he was spotted by staff arriving for their morning shift with his body trapped inside and his head outside, on 6 July. They opened the door and noticed his injuries so Chloe took him to Wildlife Aid nearby for full assessment and treatment.
7. A florist was left in a panic after finding a tiny exotic frog in a shipment of flowers from overseas. Inspector Jo Bowling went to Cranleigh, Surrey, on 17 July to collect the pretty orange flower, still wrapped in cellophane, with the little frog inside. She took the stowaway to the charity’s Brighton Reptile Rescue where he was identified as a striped spiny reed from the bushland of West Africa!
8. A tiny pipistrelle bat ended up in a spot of bother after falling down a metal light shaft in a loft in Thatcham, Berkshire. The concerned homeowners contacted the RSPCA for help and rescuer Becky Timberlake went to help on 25 July. She said: “The poor tiny bat had fallen down the shaft and couldn’t get back out again. I was able to catch him and check him over and, luckily, the delicate little bat was injured. I kept him in a quiet, warm and dark box until it was dusk and then released him nearby so he could find his way back to his roost.”
9. A robin who tried to join in the fun ended up in a bit of a pickle after getting stuck beneath a sunken trampoline in a play park in Tonbridge, Kent, on 26 July. Rescuer Kirsten Ormerod was called in to help free the little bird. A local council worker helped Kirsten to access the hole and catch the robin who quickly flew off back to his nest.
10. A cheeky squirrel was caught red-pawed helping himself to the nuts for the birds after getting stuck INSIDE a bird feeder cage, made to stop the squirrels! Rescuer Claire Thomas was called out to Ashford, Kent, on 7 August to help the stricken squirrel. She said: “The little so and so had managed to get inside the bars and was helping himself to the nuts! He was still trying to chomp on the peanut as I freed him. He wasn’t injured so I set him free and he scampered off back into the garden.”
11. A fox cub needed help after getting his back leg stuck in the metal grate of a drain in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. Rescuer Lauren Bailey was called to help the stricken youngster on 8 August when passersby spotted the poor cub. She said: “The fox must have got stuck after his leg fell down the gap and was quite distressed and bedraggled, from the rain, when I arrived. We offered him a little dish of water and then set about carefully trying to wriggle him free. Thankfully, I was able to get him out but was concerned about his leg so took him to a wildlife hospital for treatment.”
12. It was a busy day for rescuer Lauren Bailey, who was also called to Banbury, Oxfordshire, on 8 August after a member of the public spotted a podgy hedgehog in a tight spot! Lauren said: “The rather chunky hedgehog had fallen down an open drain and got wedged around 1ft down inside the tight pipe. I was able to bend and flex some metal coat hangers into a little hook and carefully pull him up and out. Thankfully he wasn’t injured so I set him on his way and he scurried off into the undergrowth!”
13. A stallion who was desperate to reach his neigh-bours got himself in an embarrassing spot after getting stuck straddling a gate. Rescuer Tina Nash was called to a field in Rochester, Kent, on 10 August after passing walkers spotted his plight. She said: “He was trying to get to the mares but obviously isn’t the greatest showjumper and got himself stuck halfway! He could have walked along the fenceline a little further to see his lady friends!” A crew from Kent Fire & Rescue Service came to help winch the skewbald from the gate and release him back into his paddock.
14. A silly deer ran into a fence and got stuck fast THREE times as rescuers battled to free her and release her safely to the wild in Kent. Rescuer Grace Harris-Bridge was called to the Tunbridge Wells garden on 9 September after spotting the deer stuck between metal railings. She was able to push her through but, in a panic, the frightened deer ran off and got stuck in another section of fencing and then did the same a third time! Grace said: “She was really panicked and I didn’t want to take any further chances so I enlisted the help of a neighbour who very kindly kept hold of her head and neck while I freed her. With two pairs of hands we were able to keep hold of her to check her over for any injuries.” They carried her to a neighbouring field and released her there where she darted off into the undergrowth.
15. A runaway lizard prompted a major rescue mission after he slipped out of his enclosure, climbed out of a window, scaled the outside wall of his terraced home and settled in to sunbathe on the roof! RSPCA inspector David Grant was called to Folkestone Harbour in Kent on 27 September to help the naughty lizard! David said: “It’s the first time I’ve ever been called out to rescue an iguana, particularly one on the loose on a roof. As it was so high up, I called Kent Fire & Rescue who were able to provide their expertise and equipment to help get the lizard down safely. We didn’t want him to run off by frightening him unnecessarily, so we used my drop-net to capture him and we soon had him back on the ground.” He was reunited with his owners who will now be taking extra steps to make sure he can’t escape to heights again!
16. A man cooking dinner had quite the shock when a little snake slithered out from underneath his microwave! Surprised, he called the RSPCA for help and rescuer Clive Hopwood went to the home in Edenbridge, Kent, on 20 October to collect him. “A vet checked the corn snake over and I took him to South Essex Wildlife Hospital for care,” Clive said. “I expect he’s an escaped pet so hopefully we’ll be able to reunite him with his owner!”
17. It was RSPCA inspector Mitchell Smith to the rescue when a not-so-cunning fox got her head stuck in a home in some wooden decking! He was called to a garden in Luton, Bedfordshire, on 16 October and said: “The caller had contacted the fire brigade to help and I managed to safely cut the decking either side of the fox’s head. When the firefighters arrived they cut the plank further along so it could be removed. I managed to then free the fox and check her over and fortunately she was none the worse for her ordeal and ran away.”
18. Rescuers from the RSPCA, police and fire service came to the rescue of a cat who got stuck 60ft high on a ledge above Ramsgate Tunnel, Kent. The ginger cat was rescued on 23 October after firefighters abseiled down to him and passed him to rescuer Clive Hopwood, on an aerial platform, to carry to safety. Clive said: “The cat was in a really perilous predicament on a small ledge around 60ft from the ground. He was around 10ft down from the top so we believe he fell from the higher ground and got stuck on the ledge.” The missing moggy, Jinks, was reunited with his owner, Kim Abraham, just a few days later. She said: “We had a lot of sleepless nights, we were so worried about him. We’re so relieved to have him back.”
19. A chunky squirrel needed a helping hand from the RSPCA after getting trapped in a bird feeder. Concerned homeowners spotted the squirrel stuck in the garden of their Banstead home, in Surrey, on 10 November and called the RSPCA. Animal rescue officer Louis Horton said: “The poor squirrel obviously thought he had an easy meal by helping himself to the bird feed but unfortunately it wasn’t quite as simple as he had hoped! Fortunately, he was uninjured and I was able to free him there and then by cutting away at the metal. As soon as he could, he scampered off as fast as he was able to!”
20. A greedy badger was sett in his ways after having rotten luck while scavenging for food. He climbed inside the compost bin and got stuck, prompting help from RSPCA rescuer Louis Horton who rushed to Guildford, Surrey, on 24 November. “The green plastic compost bin would normally have a lid secured on top but this inquisitive and hungry badger had spotted an opportunity for what he thought would be an easy meal and clambered in through the open top. The compost bin was around 2ft tall and narrower at the top so although the poor little guy could poke his head out of the top, he couldn’t squeeze himself up and out. I used some power tools to carefully cut the top of the plastic away and lift him out.” The badger went to Wildlife Aid Foundation for a check-up before being released two days later.
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