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RSPCA: The curious incident of the dog stuck in a plughole and other stories

RSPCA: The curious incident of the dog stuck in a plughole and other stories

RSPCA to the rescue!

Almost every week RSPCA officers are called out to rescue cats stuck up trees but the charity is also regularly called to rescue distressed animals trapped in the most unusual places.

Last year the RSPCA collected and rescued 194,965 animals. Today, the charity released the details of some of the strangest, saddest and sometimes shocking rescues they have been called out to the in the last 12 months.

From a dog stuck in a plughole to a kitten trapped INSIDE a wall for five days; this promises to be one of the busiest years on record for the RSPCA.

Other ‘unusual’ rescues in the last year include:

·         A fox found on a shelf      
·         A mouse in a toaster
·         A cat with her head stuck in a tin can
·         A deer tangled in a football net
·         A snake trapped in a cabbage patch
·         A young bird stuck upside down from a 70ft branch
·         A dog stuck with his head in an air vent
·         A cat trapped in a church Bell Tower
·         A horse left dangling over a cliff by her tether

“From gas explosions to oil spills and floods to strange and unusual rescues like a dog in plughole- our officers are trained to be able to deal with any situation,” says Jason Finch, RSPCA national flood rescue co-ordinator.

“Bringing animals to safety and reuniting pets and farm animals with their grateful owners, as well as seeing wildlife re-released into their natural habitat, is one of the best parts of the job,” he added.

In what has been dubbed one of the RSPCA’s “most unusual rescues of 2012” – Little Emma, a Yorkshire terrier, had to be saved by the charity after her foot got stuck in the plug hole of a bath and her new owner could not get her free.

The owner called the RSPCA and inspector Jennie Ronksley attended. The dog’s foot was firmly stuck and in the end they had to remove the whole of the plug and take out a bath panel.

Inspector Ronksley said: “Little Emma was stuck for over half an hour and was clearly in pain as she yelped constantly whilst we tried to free her.

“The bath was taken apart and eventually the dog’s foot along with the plug hole was removed from the bath. There was a happy ending but this is one of the more unusual rescues I've had.”

In another case (that would have been the bafflement of Scotland Yard) a tiny kitten was rescued by the RSPCA after being trapped for several days in the cavity wall of a home. The cries of the ginger kitten- since named Macavity- were heard by the tenant of a flat in Liskeard, Cornwall.

When he was rescued, RSPCA animal welfare officer (AWO) Felicity Cross was flabbergasted to discover that the kitten was just six weeks' old and weighed less than a bar of chocolate.

AWO Cross said: "What was even more surprising is that we undertook a thorough search of the property, including the loft, and we couldn't find any sign of the mother or any other kittens. There was absolutely no indication of how Macavity got there. He really is a mystery cat."

It is just two weeks until the launch of the RSPCA’s new ‘Everyday Heroes’ campaign –  which aims to highlight the unimaginable dangers facing many animals and help support the brave charity workers who try to rescue and protect them.

It costs £60,000 for the RSPCA to train and equip just one inspector to carry out these rescues. To help the RSPCA carry out this vital work like this text HELP to 78866 to give £3 (texts cost £3 + one standard network rate message.


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