Revealed: the animal rescues that cost £8.5m

It is not just rescuing cats from trees – it seems the job of a modern firefighter also involves removing dogs from wine racks, hamsters from beneath baths and six-foot snakes from behind radiators.

By Jasper Copping
Published: 7:30AM BST 18 Oct 2009

A survey of fire services across the UK has revealed the dozens of species that have required the aid of crews.

Firefighters have been involved in 10,726 animal rescues over the past two years, at a cost of £8.5 million.

The most frequently-rescued pets were cats, with 2,826 call-outs, followed by dogs, with 2,277. However, there were also thousands of rescues of smaller household pets, farm animals and even wild animals.

The third most common type of incident was rescues of birds, with a total of 2,049 over the two years. Although some were pets – including a budgie stuck behind a fridge in Kent – most were wild birds which had become entangled in netting or on buildings or trees.

Seagulls and pigeons were the most frequently rescued birds. In East Sussex, for instance, 108 seagulls were rescued. Just one operation, to rescue pigeons trapped in netting in North Yorkshire, required three fire appliances and cost £1,406.

Among rescues of wild animals there were incidents involving deer (244), squirrels (21), and badgers and hedgehogs (10 each), as well as one involving an otter. Thirty-four foxes were rescued – one, in East Sussex, from under a drawbridge, and one, in Humberside, which had become trapped on a duck island.

Fire crews have also been to the aid of marine mammals: whales (at least four call-outs), dolphins (four), and seals (nine).

Rescued animals ranged in size from horses (1,909) and cattle (955) to gerbils, chinchillas and iguanas (three of each). Pets including ferrets, rabbits and guinea pigs have been saved.

Among the 18 hamsters that required rescuing was one in East Sussex trapped under a bath.

In Strathclyde, firefighters were called after a pet rat became trapped under a children's roundabout. In Devon, a crew had to extricate a six-foot boa constrictor from behind a radiator; the task was completed in 45 minutes and cost £312.

A buffalo was rescued from a pond by a crew in Fife. Other unusual rescues have involved a raccoon, on Humberside, and even two fish "in distress", in Nottinghamshire.

Although fire services can charge for rescues, in most cases they pick up the bill themselves. The cost varies, depending on the number of fire engines required and the length of the incident. Most services cost their work at between £200 and £300 an hour.

From the figures, provided under the Freedom of Information Act, the average cost of each animal rescue in the past two years was £557.

However, some rescues can be far more costly. An operation to recover a dog in trouble at Ross-on-Wye took seven hours, at cost of £1,819.

The same service, Hereford and Worcester, was also involved in the rescue of a swan at Kidderminster which took nine hours and cost £2,207.70, and two black swans at Droitwich, which took 8 hrs and 56 mins and cost £2,150. All three swans were successfully rescued.

In North Yorkshire, the rescue of a swan with a broken wing involved seven appliances and cost £3,483.80.

Other incidents are resolved far more simply. When firefighters from the Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service were called to an address in Tilehurst, Reading, to assist a squirrel stuck on a roof, their log recorded simply: "Persuaded down by brigade. 1 hour."

The rescue of a rabbit under a garden shed in Northern Ireland was resolved in a similarly straightforward manner, by the crew poking a broom handle under the structure.

On some occasions, the animals seem to need rescuing from other animals.

Firefighters in Cornwall were called to a fledgling tawny owl which had left its nest but become stuck 25ft up a tree, in Helston, where a caller said it was being "mobbed by crows". The crew were able to rescue the owl using a ladder in an incident that cost £133.65.

In Strathclyde, a cat, called Magnus, needed rescuing because a caller reported he was "stuck up a tree being attacked by magpies".

Another cat, in the same region, became trapped in a dumb waiter.

Among the most common places for cats to become stuck are up trees, on roofs, in chimneys or wall cavities and in television sets.

In North Yorkshire, an operation to remove a cat from up a tree required three appliances and cost the fire service £1,446.98.

One cat in Fife became trapped in a washing machine and required five firemen to free it.

While many dogs became stuck while playing outdoors, many also became entangled in domestic appliances.

At least two dogs became caught in wine racks – one in Leicestershire and a ten-week-old puppy in Dorset, in an incident which was resolved in just 16 minutes at a cost of £21.94.

A Pomeranian, called Chloe, had to be removed from a reclining chair, by Northern Irish firemen using spanners and a lever bar

A Shih Tzu in Inverness also became stuck in a reclining chair, which the crew had to dismantle with chisels and screwdrivers.

Firefighters in Lincolnshire had to use similar tools to remove a cat flap after a dog became wedged in it.

Another dog, in the same county, had to be released from a wheelie bin by firefighters using hydraulic cutting gear usually deployed to free the victims of car accidents. One dog, in Norfolk, had to be freed after getting its mouth stuck between two table legs.

In Tyne and Wear, a crew was called after a trainee guide dog became stuck in its travel crate.

Bob Ratcliffe, a fire officer in Hampshire and chairman of the Chief Fire Officers' Association's animal rescue forum, said most reports of trapped animals were first reported to the RSPCA, but that fire services often responded in order to discourage members of the public from putting themselves in danger by attempting to help the creature themselves.

"Our concern is about the welfare of the animal as well as the safety of the public who may try to respond to that animal," he said.

A spokesman for the RSPCA said the money used to rescue the animals was well spent: "We believe that the investment is worth it to prevent any animals from suffering and to safeguard their welfare.

"I'm sure that all those grateful people who have had their beloved pets rescued would say that having their animals returned to them was priceless."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/6360102/Revealed-the-animal-rescues-that-cost-8.5m.html