More than 85 trapped animals saved in year

Dozens of cats, dogs, birds and other creatures were discovered in need of help after getting stuck in water, underground or at heights between April 1 last year and March 31. In Dudley there were 17 animal rescues, while 14 took place in Sandwell and 10 rescues in Wolverhampton. Just six took place in Walsall, but the Birmingham area had the most rescue attempts with 39 incidents.

Three domestic animals, including cats and dogs, were rescued from heights in Dudley, while the same amount of pets were involved in water related rescues.

A farm animal had to be rescued from water in Coseley, while another had to be rescued from underground in the Kingswinford North and Wall Heath ward.

In January, a Siberian husky had a lucky escape when firefighters plucked him from an icy pool off Himley Road, Dudley, using an inflatable dinghy.

Fire crews attending from Bilston and Dudley called in specialist water rescues crews to help with the dramatic 45-minute rescue.

In Sandwell, there were five water related rescue call-outs to save cats, dogs and other pets. Three other pets had to be rescued from a height and there were two water rescues involving farm animals.

Crews had to act quickly when a Staffordshire bull terrier fell into the lock on a stretch of Dudley Canal near Factory Road, Tipton, in February.

A specialist rescue team used ladders to climb down the sides of the lock.

Animal rescues in Wolverhampton included three cats and dogs being hauled to safety from underground, while three pets and two birds had to be saved from a height.

There were six animal rescues in Walsall and in Birmingham the most common call-out involved rescuing cats, dogs and other pets from heights, with 14 such incidents.

There were also eight reports across the city where birds had to be rescued after getting stuck at a height.

Water rescues accounted for seven call-outs, while four other animals were involved in underground rescues.

The figures were released by West Midlands Fire Service following a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

West Midlands Fire Service spokesman Neil Spencer said: "In general terms, animal rescues are the responsibility of the RSPCA, who people should call first in such cases. We deploy to incidents at which, without our involvement, there is a potential risk to human life."

Large animals are rescued by the service's highly-skilled technical unit.