Stuck cat rescued after ordeal in pipe

This little cat had to be rescued by firefighters in Shropshire who were forced to drill through a wall after her head got stuck in a pipe.

Eighteen-month-old Molly was found by owner Alan Grass with her head stuck in a drain hole in his back garden on Tuesday morning.

Mr Grass said he could see his freezing feline's head wedged in the pipe, with the rest of her body in the snow.

He said: "She was using her front paws to push against the wall to try to back out.

"I was becoming increasingly worried as Molly's loud meows had turned to softer whimpers as she became weaker."

After gently pulling Molly, Mr Grass tried washing up liquid to ease Molly's head out of the pipe, and then, with a neighbour's help, tried drilling into the brick wall - but nothing was shifting the cat.

He wrapped Molly's body in a fleece and his wife Ann called the fire service and a vet.

A crew from Much Wenlock Fire Station arrived and cut into the surrounding bricks with a huge drill, freeing the pipe and Molly, who was wrapped in a silver foil blanket to help her warm up.

Mr Grass added: "Molly emerged covered in brick dust turning her fur a deep orange rather than her normal black and white."

Vet Adrian Budd, of the Old Pound Veterinary Centre in Much Wenlock, checked Molly over and gave her a sedative to help her recover.

He said: "Molly was a bit shell-shocked, dishevelled, cold, and covered in brick dust."

Mr Grass added the kitten immediately went to her favourite place behind the Christmas tree to recuperate.

He said: "The drain holes have now been closed off and Molly is looking less wobbly and a bit perkier.

"If she had been stuck for much longer it might have been a different story."

By Ian Jolly