The RSPCA has lifted the lid on its most extraordinary and downright peculiar animal rescues from 2025, showcasing a year where foxes got trapped in furniture, a puffin was blown 110 miles inland, and a kitten's 'booming meows' echoed from a sewage works.
From Sewers to Slurry: Unlikely Places for Animal Ordeals
One of the year's strangest calls came from Handsworth, Birmingham, where staff at a sewage works were stunned to hear loud cries. RSPCA Inspectors Boris Lasserres and Cara Gibbon donned dry suits in October to save a tiny kitten, nicknamed 'Olivia Twist', who was trapped down a flow system. "We think she must have fallen from quite a height," said Cara, noting the kitten had been there for at least three days. After veterinary care, Olivia Twist made a full recovery and found a new home.
It wasn't the only urban misadventure. In Mottingham, South East London, a fox slipped and got its paw stuck between the slats of a garden chair in January. Meanwhile, in Derby, a young fox cub had to be extracted from the engine of an Amazon delivery van after gnawing through a cable and illuminating a dashboard warning light.
The year also saw an overweight raccoon causing a stir in Gwennap, Cornwall, and a harmless corn snake slithering around a fish and chip shop in Greenwich, London, after escaping a nearby house.
Birds, Badgers and a Very Lost Puffin
Feathered friends found themselves in all sorts of tangles. A peregrine falcon was trapped in anti-bird netting in Birmingham, while a seagull in Ramsgate, Kent, got caught in a football net. Perhaps the most remarkable avian tale was that of a puffin, nicknamed 'Oona', who was blown 110 miles inland to a garden in Stoke Lacy, Herefordshire. The exhausted bird was nursed back to health and returned to the Pembrokeshire coast.
On the ground, a badger in Sheffield became entangled in a football goal net, and a tawny owl was found hanging 20ft above fast-flowing water in Bedwas, Wales, after its wing got caught on a branch.
Heartwarming Reunions and Triumphant Recoveries
Amid the chaos were stories of profound relief and recovery. In a remarkable turn of events, the RSPCA reunited Rita and Philip Potter from Norfolk with their beloved Labrador, Daisy, eight years after she was stolen. Found in an emaciated state in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, in February, Daisy's return was described by 80-year-old Rita as "an absolute dream come true".
Other rescues included a lurcher named Peanut, described as the thinnest dog an officer had ever seen, a horse stuck in mud in Edenbridge, Kent, and a hedgehog in Cheddar, Somerset, which made a full recovery after having many spines cut off by a strimmer.
The charity also oversaw the release of three grey seals—Shakira, Iggy Pop, and Elmer—back into the wild in Devon in December.
RSPCA superintendent Simon Osborne reflected on a relentless year, stating: "Every single day throughout the year, our teams rescue, rehabilitate and rehome hundreds of animals with very special backgrounds and stories of triumph over adversity." The charity received a staggering 634,000 reports about trapped or abused animals in 2025, marking one of its busiest years on record.
