Mother’s Love: Vixen saves snared cub

Willy, a three-month-old cub, was left with horrific injuries after being caught in the wire trap.

He was only discovered after he was heard screaming in agony on scrubland close to homes in Orsett, Southend, Essex.

Willy the fox cub made a lucky escape

RSPCA Inspector Sam Garvey, who helped rescue the terrified fox, said: ‘Due to the amount of time he had been there, we think he must have been fed by his mother because he was still quite chubby.

‘The poor little thing was wedged in 2ft of bushes and bramble beyond a fence at the end of the garden.

‘We could hear him screaming. The snare was tied to a tree and we lifted out the fence panel and cut him free.

‘It was horrific. The vets have stitched him back together. The wire had cut right through his middle, right down to his bones.’

The wire snare which trapped the cub around his waist and a two pence piece which indicates its size.

Vets believe he spent up to two weeks in the trap because his life-threatening wounds had begun to heal around the self-locking snare.

The wire had tightened around his stomach to the size of a couple of twopence pieces.

Farmers commonly use the snares and check them regularly and destroy animals caught in them.

But the RSPCA inspector added: ‘These traps don’t just catch foxes, they can trap cats and dogs as well. Someone laid this trap, probably because they were having a problem with foxes in their garden or getting into the rubbish.

‘But causing an animal unnecessary suffering is a criminal offence and we will not hesitate to prosecute whoever is responsible.’

The cub is being cared for at South Essex Wildlife Hospital in Orsett.