It was a warm spring day when a Good Samaritan in South East England stumbled across a tiny, fluffy animal in a dangerous predicament. The baby was running around frantically with her head stuck inside an empty food container — and she was losing oxygen by the minute.
“Her curiosity had led her into the tricky situation of getting her head stuck in a plastic jar,” The Fox Project (TFP) wrote on Facebook.
The fox cub, later named Jar Jar, darted around the neighborhood, trying desperately to get the container off her head. Her oxygen levels continued going down, but, thankfully, the Good Samaritan who found the cub called TFP for help just in time.
TFP’s volunteers rushed to find her, and they soon had the sweet, scared girl in their care. They could tell right away that removing the plastic container would be a delicate and time-consuming process, but she needed immediate intervention to breathe.
“With swift precision, a hole was cut in the jar to allow airflow, and Jar Jar was brought to the safety of our hospital,” TFP wrote.
Jar Jar and her rescuers all breathed deep sighs of relief once the bottom of the container was removed. She was still in fragile condition — the other side of the jar was stuck around her neck — but she could finally breathe for the first time in a while.
The team shuttled Jar Jar to the hospital, where they carefully removed the rest of the plastic container. They gave her a thorough checkup and confirmed that, although weak, her condition was treatable, and she wasn’t hurt in any way.
“[S]he was dehydrated, hungry and covered in ticks,” TSP wrote. “But thankfully, there were no wounds.”
The rescue team removed the ticks from Jar Jar’s body, fed her a nutritious meal and set up a cozy den for her to sleep in. They were thrilled to see the resilient girl perk up again the next morning and continue to thrive in the days following.
“After receiving the care and rest she needed, along with some nourishing meals and close observations, we are delighted to report that she is doing really well!” TFP wrote in an update on Facebook.
You can see more pictures from her rescue here:
Jar Jar grew stronger every day, and she was eventually ready for socialization. That’s when she met the other rescued fox cubs at TFP.
“Jar Jar has joined a group of four other rescued cubs and is happily enjoying their company in an outdoor pen,” TFP wrote.
While Jar Jar enjoys her time with the other cubs, her rescuers continue to prep her for her eventual release back into her natural habitat — but they are happily going at her pace.
Soon, Jar Jar and her friends will be released together as a group in a safe location specifically chosen by TFP. The team is looking forward to seeing the cubs run off together in their new home, and they hope the community can work together to reduce the amount of plastic waste they encounter.
As much as they’ve loved getting to know Jar Jar, they hope they never have to help her out of a plastic container again.
