When two funeral directors heard a strange scratching in the walls, the earthly explanation turned out to be a cat trapped in an old chimney.
The puss, simply named Cat, was in a bad way after six long days in the disused shaft at Jenny and David Williams’ business.
Rescuers called to AD Williams in Ilfracombe quickly spotted two terrified eyes glowing in the dark.
North Devon Animal Ambulance and Metro Rod, a drain care firm, used a rod to tease Cat off his perch and show him the way to freedom.
Dave Tafner, of Metro Rod, said: “We cannot refuse when someone comes with a story like that. It touched the heart strings, it was the least we could do.”
Jenny has since met with Cat’s grateful owners who have taken him to the NDAA clinic in Barnstaple, where he is recovering.
In less light-hearted animal news, this week an undercover investigation revealed that Mink and foxes are being kept in horrific conditions at Finnish fur farms.
The animals were filmed suffering painful wounds and even resorting to cannibalism because they were so distressed, campaigners claim.
Mink lay dead in their tiny, filthy cages and others had injuries including infected eyes, cuts and weeping sores.
Fur farms were banned in Britain in 2003, but Finland exports millions of pounds of fur the country each year.
