Yahoo News Firefighters rescued almost 5,000 animals last year - from some bizarre places
British firefighters are used to tackling more than fires - they also rescued thousands of wild and domestic animals in the last year.
From saving puppies trapped by a fire, to rescuing a cat stuck in an air conditioning unit and a pig wedged into a drain, firefighters are thrown into some unusual situations.
Now, official data has detailed the different types of fire and non-fire related incidents firefighters tackle every day.
The government report shows that around 5,000 animals were rescued by the fire service in the year 2018-2019.
The data is broken down into three categories: wild, domestic and livestock - and the different scenarios the animals find themselves in.
And some have raised a few eyebrows.
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A total of 969 incidents of domestic animals being ‘rescued from height’ were recorded.
Bizarrely, there were 26 incidents of livestock being rescued from height.
In even more surprising data, 182 birds were rescued from height.
Around 159 domestic animals were rescued from ‘below ground’, while 29 wild animals and four birds were saved in the same scenario.
Meanwhile, there were 438 incidents of livestock rescued from water or mud.
In the same category, 190 pets were saved, while firefighters also rescued 13 birds and 91 wild beasts.
There were 271 cases of livestock becoming trapped, plus 1,083 domestic pets and 498 wild animals.
Big-hearted firefighters also saved animals from acts of cruelty, including 138 incidents of harm and abuse against domestic animals.
Animals have become such a large part of a firefighter’s job, pet-friendly oxygen masks were introduced to every fire engine and station in the country.
