Animals often get themselves in tough situations-at times because of humans but sometimes on their own. Thankfully when animals can’t help themselves, there are people who can be called upon to save them. Animal rescue stories are some of the most uplifting, reassuring us that there are good humans in the world who care about other creatures with whom we share the earth and its resources.
Here are some odd, funny, and interesting animal rescue stories that will surely bring a smile to your face.
This sea lion nicknamed Chompers was found clinging to life on a buoy off the coast of California. Chompers had fishing line wrapped around his neck and a hook stuck in his head which lead to a near deadly infection.
When he was brought to the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, doctors untangled him and treated the infection. Chompers, however, was not eating even after the infection cleared. Doctors discovered he had 20 rocks in his stomach. They were able to remove 12 of the rocks through his mouth. Chompers then vomited up the rest which got him quickly on the road to recovery. He was miraculously able to return to the wild in November 2020.
Poor Jamie the hamster was stuck in a tiny pipe for almost a week. He ended up at the bottom of a 10 cm wide, 3-foot-tall pipe and the pet sitter could not get him out. The sitter spent 6 days dropping food to him and even a rope with the hopes he would climb out. She finally called animal rescuers for help.
Animal welfare officer Alison Sparkes created a tiny ladder out of a single row of old wire mesh and placed it in the pipe. Jamie managed to climb up the ladder to safety shortly after. Other than being a bit dehydrated, Jamie was fine.
This poor deer somehow fell upside down in between two walls of someone’s property. Rescuers were called by a homeowner in Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire to rescue the deer who was wedged between their home and the garage. Firefighters were needed to hold the deer’s legs and head while others placed ropes underneath the animal. They were then able to lift the animal up and out to safety.
The only injuries appeared to be suffered by the rescuers who were kicked by the uncooperative animal. The firefighters were nursing some bumps and bruises but the deer took off to the woods the minute it was freed.
This poor cat somehow became impaled by several posts at the top of an 8-foot fence. A passerby spotted the cat and quickly realized it needed help. The RSPCA arrived on the scene to something it had never witnessed before. Unsure of what to do, the RSPCA quickly reached out to the fire department for backup.
The firefighters came with equipment to cut the fence posts (knowing they should not try to pull the cat off the posts) which allowed the cat to be transported to a veterinary hospital for emergency surgery. Miraculously, the cat was walking around and recovering well, perhaps grateful the posts missed his vital organs.
This sweet little starling caused quite a stir when she got stuck in a tiny gap in a manhole cover. Luckily someone spotted the tiny bird’s head before she was stepped on, run over, or eaten by another animal.
The witness called RSPCA which promptly arrived to remove the manhole cover and un-wedge the bird’s head. Luckily, she was not injured. It seemed odd that the bird was stuck with its head emerging from the manhole cover instead of the other way around. Animal rescuers determined that the bird must have been stuck in the underground drain system and spotted a way out through the gap. Unfortunately, she didn’t quite fit through without help.
This was no ordinary cat stuck in a tree. This was a mountain lion that appeared to be stuck on a tree branch nearly 5 stories off the ground. The mountain lion was spotted near a home in California close to the edge of the San Bernardino Mountains.
While it is not uncommon for cougars to wander from their mountain home, it is uncommon to find one so high up in a tree. Firefighters and wildlife officers arrived on the scene to figure out how to get this animal safely on the ground. Wildlife officials managed to tranquilize the cougar and firefighters used harnesses to lower it to safety. Biologists were on hand to evaluate the health of the mountain lion before releasing it back into its natural habitat.
Qabid, an This energetic baby rhino got stuck playing with his favorite tire and not for the first time. It was, however, the first-time firefighters had to come to the Edinburg Zoo to rescue him. Qabid was frolicking in his enclosure when head and leg became trapped in the tire. The firefighters had to come with equipment to cut him out, but only after the rhino was sedated.
This large manatee became stranded on sandbar in Georgia during low tide. It was apparently trying to navigate a manmade shortcut between two Rivers near Savannah. Manatees weigh between 800 and 1200 lbs. which makes moving them no easy task.
Wildlife workers tried hard to keep this manatee wet while waiting for help. A bulldozer was used to plow a trench from the river to the mammal. Once able, the workers rolled the manatee onto a stretcher and guided it into deeper water where it was able to swim away.
A Cooper’s hawk became injured just before Hurricane Harvey made landfall in TX. Hurricane. The bird sought shelter inside a Lone Star Taxicab owned by William Bruso.
Bruso, who was out getting hurricane preparation supplies at the time returned to his cab to find the injured hawk huddled in his passenger seat. Bruso said he tried to encourage the hawk to leave but he wouldn’t budge. So, he and the hawk, a female who he nicknamed “Harvey,” went home together to ride out the storm.
After posting videos of himself and Harvey, Liz Compton got wind of the hawk’s injuries. Compton is a wildlife rehabilitator at the Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Coalition who specializes in birds and raptors. Compton and her husband were able to get Harvey from Bruso’s home before the storm arrived, ensuring the hawk’s safety and helping her recover from her injuries.
In a genius move, Katie Alsop turned to Tinder to find and rescue her lost cat. After Peanut disappeared from her home, Alsop wanted to do more than put up “lost cat” signs. She needed something more drastic and efficient.
Alsop set up a Tinder profile for Peanut using a 6.5-mile radius of her home, featuring his picture and asking for help finding him. Within 30 minutes Alsop matched with 400 people who promised to look out for her cat. One man spotted the cat in his garden but by the cat fled when Alsop arrived. She left a trail to her home of tuna, kitty litter and dirty laundry from where peanut was spotted. Peanut arrived at her door meowing to come in, just a few hours later
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, more dogs have been rescued from shelters than ever before. In fact, so many dogs have found forever homes that there is a shortage of dogs for adoption.
These rescues may not be as odd or dramatic as some but they are equally as important – especially for the lucky dogs.
Dolphins have been known to rescue other dolphins and even humans. In this story, a pod of dolphins noticed a lone seal pup, exhausted and drifting into shallow water. When seals get too close to shallow water and are unable to swim out, there is a high likelihood they will end up beached and stranded.
The dolphins came to this baby’s rescue and gently nudged the floating pup to deeper waters. The dolphin’s behavior is a beautiful example of animals helping one another which occurs more frequently than we realize.
Firefighters were called to a scene in California following a report that a man, a dog, and a tortoise were stuck in a hole. By the time they arrived, the man had freed himself from the hole which was actually a tunnel dug by the family’s pet tortoise. The 70 lb. tortoise named Godzilla.
Godzilla was in his tunnel when the family German Shepard named Taylor decided to join him. Taylor brought a blanket which resulted in the entanglement of the animals and the blanket.
Luckily, within about 10 minutes the firefighters were able to remove enough dirt to untangle the animals and un-wedge the dog. Godzilla was finally coaxed out with some lettuce.
John Crawford, a resident of Belleville, Illinois, followed his bird Amigo into the bottom of a recently dredged lake. The blue and yellow macaw left his owner’s shoulder to explore on his own. Crawford went after him and found himself waist deep in the bottom of the muddy lake bottom. Amigo perched himself safely back on Crawford’s shoulder while rescuers had to come and drag him out of the sludge.
This story is as much about survival as it is about the rescue. In Adelaide, Australia, after hearing a crying sound coming from its car, the driver called for help. Rescuers came and removed wheel revealing a scared, grease-covered, and very relieved koala bear. Luckily, the bear had only some minor injuries after surviving a 10-mile drive!
No firefighters needed for this one. This rescue didn’t take much more than some water or careful tearing to loosen the cardboard TP roll this ferret climbed into, but it is too cute not to share. His human snapped a photo before getting him out of this tight situation.
