Who said working with animals is glamorous! East Sussex Wildlife Rescue & Ambulance Service (WRAS) were called out by Cootes Vets in Burgess Hill after they were delivered a rather smelly and dirty fox cub which had been trapped in a septic tank on a building site near Ardingly College, West Sussex.
Volunteer rescuer Dave Novell drove to the vets in Burgess Hill to collect the fox: “I was surprised at how much he smelled and I’m not surprised the vets didn’t want to touch him!”
The fox cub, one of this year's youngsers, was driven by ambulance to WRAS’s Casualty Care Centre at Whitesmith, East Sussex, where Assistant Manager Chris Riddington took on the job of cleaning up the poor fox.
“He looked so sheepish in his carrier, and I’m sure he didn’t like the smell any more than we did!”
Chris had to wear protective clothing whilst washing off the sewage from the septic tank.
“We used nice warm water and gently cleaned him up. Some of the clumps of sewage were difficult to get off but with a bit of soaking and the use of a comb they eventually came off” said Chris.
“This has to be the smelliest casualty I’ve had to deal with. We decided to name him Sherman as he was found in a septic tank!”
The fox was given antibiotics and drops in his eyes, and has now been bedded down on a warm towel to recover. It is hoped the fox will be released close to where he was found.
Press contact:
Trevor Weeks MBE - East Sussex WRAS: 01825 873003 or 07931 523958
