- There’s nothing to make you feel better than a story of animals getting helped.
In the middle of a hard week, it’s easy to feel like you need a pick-me-up. Nothing lifts your spirit quite like a feel-good animal rescue story.
Recently, a bunch of animals managed to get themselves stuck in rather strange predicaments. None of the stories was quite significant enough to stand on its own, so we collected them all into this fun list.
Here are 7 odd but heartwarming animal rescue stories to brighten up your day.
1. The Pillar Cat
The Metro Pillars supporting the railway system of the Indian city of Kochi are one of its most famous landmarks. In early February, a small kitten decided to go get a much too close a look at them.
The cat got stuck on top of one of the pillars, unable to get down. Although Kochi Metro staff noticed the animal quickly, they couldn’t rescue it as it would always hide in the crevices between the pillar and the railway structures.
After more than two weeks, on February 22, an animal rescue group was able to get the cat down, thanks to the local fire department hoisting the rescuers up with a crane. The kitty is now reportedly receiving care and has been named Subash after a popular Indian movie character.
2. Horse in a Crappy Situation
On February 22, emergency services in Moruya, Australia, received an unusual report. The caller said a horse was in deep s***—literally.
A horse had fallen into an open septic tank on a rural property and was unable to get out on its own. A veterinarian sedated the horse while the three attending emergency responders puzzled over how to lift the horse up.
Fortunately, a neighbor stepped in to help, offering his excavator to the rescuers. With the machine, they carefully pulled the horse out of the disgusting hole.
We couldn’t determine whether the horse escaped unscathed. However, it did walk off the scene with its owner after a veterinarian’s checkup, so we’re hoping everything was alright.
3. Otters in a Car
It has been cold all over the world recently. In Scotland, residents had spotted two shivering baby otters wandering around the town of Skelmorlie until they finally crawled into the still-warm engine compartment of a parked car.
Locals tried to get the otters out from under the hood, but the duo wouldn’t leave their new toasty nest. Eventually, Karen Watson was able to get them into a box and take them home.
She kept the baby otters in her bathtub overnight until wildlife professionals picked them up the next morning. Watson said she didn’t get much sleep that night, but she was strangely okay with it.
“I barely slept a wink; I didn’t want to put the lights on. They made wee snoring sounds and cuddled into each other,” she said, according to news reports.
4. Frying Venomous Ray
While the otters were freezing in Scotland, an eagle ray in Australia had the opposite problem. The flat fish had managed to leap onto a scorching hot concrete pier in Mackay Harbour and was slowly cooking alive.
A local man, Sage Jeffreys, noticed the ray’s plight and rushed to help. Using a life ring, he carefully pushed the fish back into the sea.
And he definitely had to be careful. A video of the incident shows the ray lashing toward Jeffreys with its venomous tail the entire time.
In the end, the ray didn’t sting Jeffreys, but it did leave its venomous barb on the pier as a memento of the tussle. Don’t worry about the ray, though, since the barb will grow back.
5. The Fuzzy Turtle
In early February, turtle rescue organization Coastal Connections received a bizarre visitor. A concerned person brought in a green sea turtle that was covered head to tail in fuzzy hair.
Only, the “hair” was really a blanket of red algae. According to Coastal Connections, the turtle had been hit by a boat while also suffering from a condition known as being cold-stunned due to the prevailing low temperatures.
The rescuers believe it had floated helplessly for weeks while algae slowly grew all over it. They rushed the turtle, named Bob Moss, to a more extensive facility for emergency care.
Sadly, although he got cleaned up, Bob perished from his injuries sometime later. But at least he was in a warm place getting care instead of floating in frigid waters in his algae coat.
6. CPR for a Seagull
Gani Catan is a Turkish accountant and amateur soccer player who coaches the youth team Yurdum Spor. During a training session on February 22, one of the players kicked a ball that hit a low-flying seagull.
The bird plummeted to the ground and lay motionless. Catan must be an animal lover because he immediately ran over — and started giving the bird CPR by pumping its chest.
“I acted on instinct, or maybe I once saw someone do this on a dog or a cat. When I started the chest compressions, it began moving its legs. The more it moved, the more I kept going,” Catab told AFP.
Once the bird regained consciousness, Catan took it aside to receive further care. Yurdum Spor is now considering adding a seagull to its logo to commemorate the event.
7. The Bird at the ER
In mid-February, the emergency room staff at a German restaurant got a surprise patient. Apparently no one had helped a local cormorant, so it decided to help itself.
The staff noticed the bird pecking at one of the clinic’s windows. They also saw that there was a large fishing hook stuck through its beak.
The medical professionals must not have had the tools to cut the hook, since they had to call the local fire department for help. After they’d removed the hook, though, the doctors sterilized the cormorant’s beak before releasing it back to the wild.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this in my 15 years of professional experience,” nurse Cihat Cirit said.