Watch rescuers save tiny fox cub trapped in Eastbourne College drain

Rescuers from East Sussex Wildlife Rescue & Ambulance Service (WRAS) were called out by college staff yesterday (June 25) after the young fox was found firmly wedged in the plastic cone.

It had become trapped behind some hoarding from recent construction work, allowing rescuers Trevor Weeks and Ellie Langridge to gain access.

Using a thick blanket Trevor was able to cover the fox, wrap it around him and lift him up carefully.

“Normally you would scruff a fox but this was not possible due to the plastic around the fox’s neck, all I could do if wrap the blanket round the fox,” he said.

Once back out of the enclosure, the fox was placed into a waiting cage and transported to WRAS’s veterinary Hospital at Whitesmith near Hailsham. Rescuers were then able to cut away at the plastic making the hole bigger for the fox to get his head through.

“The fox was clearly pleased to be free from his black plastic cone,“ said WRAS’s Lead Casualty Manager Katie Nunn Nash. “ We have decided to keep him in for a few days of observations especially as he has been coughing which could be as a result of swelling from the plastic.”

Any animal caught like this can have an invisible ligature injury, which can cause swelling under the skin and affect the airway and circulation.

WRAS will monitor the fox closely and hopes he will make a full recovery.