A "distressed" sheep stuck in a barbed wire fence in Hanbury was freed by the RSPCA.

The animal welfare charity was contacted by a member of the public who saw the sheep near Holmes Lane on Saturday (May 7).

RSPCA inspector Suzi Smith attended and freed the ewe, which thankfully was unharmed after its ordeal.

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Suzi said: “This sheep was clearly distressed and just couldn’t escape the fence.

“Luckily I was able to free the sheep and she was able to return to her flock straight away as she had managed to escape injury.

“Sadly it is a common problem with sheep getting stuck in brambles or fences.

"It did take some time to get to the location - about an hour and a half.

“What we advise as a helpful solution is for farmers to put emergency contact numbers on their footpath gates so that if a walker spots a sheep or livestock in a difficult situation, they can contact the farmer directly who will be there locally to solve the problem quickly.”

The RSPCA is currently experiencing a high volume of calls, with trained call handlers prioritising emergency calls to get help as quickly as possible to animals who are most at immediate risk of extreme cruelty and neglect, and sick and injured wildlife.

The animal welfare charity is encouraging people to only report absolute emergencies.

Last year (2021) the RSPCA received more than a million calls - which equates to one every 30 seconds. There are just 408 frontline rescuers covering the whole of England and Wales.

To help the RSPCA continue rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animals in desperate need of care please visit the website or call the donation line on 0300 123 8181.