A fox cub has been rescued after getting his head stuck in a plastic tub.

Residents spotted the distressed animal in bushes at a waste ground and called East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS) to help.

The initial response team arrived at Woodgate Road in Eastbourne on Tuesday evening but began losing light and couldn’t find the fox so two more wildlife rescue ambulances were called to help before they found it.

Senior Rescuer Chris Riddington, who was first on the scene, said: “It looked like the cub had its head in a glass jar, but was difficult to tell exactly what it was. “He was running around between the bushes slightly disorientated on some waste ground.”

Fellow rescuer Kathy Martyn said they were determined to find the cub as light had started to fade.

She said: “We didn’t want to give up, as we were worried the cub might develop breathing problems and was probably already becoming dehydrated and hungry too.

“We knew the longer we left the fox the worse condition the cub would be in.

“There was a chance the fox could be dead by the morning.”

The seven-week-old cub was taken to WRAS’s casualty centre, and was treated with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs.

WRAS founder Trevor Weeks said the fox is in good health and is being watched for any signs of trauma as a result of the pressure put on his neck by the tub.

He added: “Signs are looking good and we are hoping to get him home, hopefully today.

“But it is important to point out that people need to remember to pick up after themselves.

“We see quite a lot of animals here as a result of littering, like cans wrapped around bodies and swans in carrier bags, so people [should] give the consequences of their actions some thought.”

See the video of the rescue at The Argus website.