A YOUNG fox was found with its head stuck in the centre of a plastic wire reel.

Father Carl Davies spotted the trapped animal through his kitchen window as it struggled to get free in the car park of St Catherine’s Catholic Church in Littlehampton.

He was quick to call the RSPCA, who sent an inspector to go to the aid of the unfortunate fox.

Father Davies said: “At first I thought it must be a dead dog but then I saw the poor thing was alive and had a cable tunnel stuck on his head and he was in a lot of distress, struggling to get it off.

“It was a terrible thing to see an animal suffer like that.”

RSPCA deputy chief inspector Charlotte Baumann quickly went to the animal’s aid.

She said: “He was only a young fox and was well and truly wedged inside a wire coil reel holder which was discarded in the car park.

“We don’t know how long he had been stuck like that but the poor thing must have been very stressed out.

“I had to take him, with the holder attached, to a nearby vets where he could be sedated and gently removed from the plastic reel.

“After staying overnight at the vets, he was then released back into the wild by the veterinary staff at Fitzalan House Vets near to where he was found. Hopefully he won’t be getting into any more trouble now.”

Father Davies was “delighted” to have been able to help the fox but said that it was sad to see animals suffer because of waste discarded by humans.

Charlotte said: “We’d urge people to ensure they dispose of rubbish and discarded items responsibly so that wild animals can’t come across them and become injured or trapped.

“Sadly, we deal with about 5,000 incidents every year in which animals have been trapped, hurt or killed due to litter.”