Fox sneaks into family’s home and goes to sleep on their microwave

Today in ‘extremely London photos’, we have a young fox cub passed out on top of a microwave.

He may have got fed up with sleeping behind bins, so climbed into a family’s home through the cat-flap, knocked over a few pot plants and curled up for the night.

Kim Fryer, who found him when she came downstairs at 7am, said: ‘I turned on the kitchen light expecting him to make a bolt for the cat-flap but instead he just opened one eye and did not move.’

She called the RSPCA and the animal was taken to a rescue centre and checked over for any injuries or illness. He was given a clean bill of health and released back into the open near the home where he was found.

Kim Fryer was at home in Rawnsley Avenue, Mitcham on December 15 when her daughter discovered the fox early in the morning.

‘My daughter found him at 7am and called up to me. I came down and spotted this little fox curled up on top of the microwave,’ she said.

‘I have five cats and a dog so obviously I have a cat flap. He must have crawled under the gate and through the cat flap. A couple of my plants were smashed and there was mud everywhere.

‘I put the light on and one eye opened but he didn’t move. We could tell there was something wrong with him.’

A spokesman for the RSPCA said Inspector Phil Norman attended to collect the fox. He was taken to the charity’s Putney Animal Hospital, in London, where vets checked him over and monitored him.

‘While he seemed extremely weak and lethargic to begin with he soon perked up and staff could find nothing wrong with him,’ said the spokesman.

‘He had got in through the cat flap and found a nice warm spot to sleep in. He was quite happy to be taken in to the hospital for a health check but was understandably not keen on being in a cage.

‘Fortunately he was quite healthy with a beautiful fluffy coat, so after a thorough check over he was released back to the area he was found in by one of the hospital staff.’