Fox with his head stuck in broken bottle in Southsea school rescued

The injured animal was found hiding on the grounds of Wimborne Junior School, in Wimborne Road, Southsea, last week.

The plastic bottle had caused swelling and three deep cuts to his neck from when he had desperately tried to remove the broken bottle.

But there was no way he was going to pull himself free without help, according to RSPCA Animal Collection Officer Katie Wood, who freed the fox from his fix.

She said: ‘This poor fox was really struggling to free himself and was terrified, so I knew I had to act quickly to catch him and bring him to safety.

‘Thankfully he was found before it was too late.’

The animal was taken to the veterinary team at the Stubbington Ark animal shelter in Fareham, where he recovered before being released back into Southsea on Tuesday.

Katie added: ‘The RSPCA Stubbington Ark’s amazing vet team made sure his injury was cleaned and stitched back up.

‘He then spent a few days recovering at the centre before I had the honour of releasing the fox back very close by where he was found on Tuesday.

‘It was lovely to be able to see it the whole way through to him going back to where he belongs in such a short space of time after being found in such a terrible state.’

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Since 2015, the RSPCA’s emergency hotline in England and Wales has received 6,466 calls about animals in trouble because of general litter, including tin cans, plastic bottles and elastic bands.

Adam Grogan, head of the RSPCA's wildlife team, said: ‘Litter is one of the biggest hazards our wildlife faces today.

‘I'm sure for every animal we're able to help there are many that go unseen, unreported and may even lose their lives.’

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