MOST calls received by the RSPCA every 30 seconds are serious - but occasionally they range from the weird to the wonderful. The charity has now released its top 10 funny calls received over the last 12 months.
1 A lady called our emergency phone line to find out which bus she needed to catch to visit Putney animal hospital.
2 Someone called us to report that a cat was stuck on a roof. However, it turned out to be a satellite dish.
3 Someone asked our call centre staff to speak to her husband as he was refusing to get out of bed and walk the dog.
4 A very unhappy woman called to say that a cat had been abandoned in her garden. She called back later that day in a better mood to say that the cat turned out to be a surprise present from her husband.
5 A lady called up one evening to ask if we could open up one of our branches as she had left her hearing aid there.
6 A caller asked if she could borrow a cat from one of our centres. She didn’t actually want a cat but she had a problem with mice in her house.
7 A woman called to tell us that there was something in her bathroom but that she was not sure if it was a hamster or a spider.
8 An RSPCA inspector went out to an incident following reports that a cat had been found under a bush. However, the ‘cat’ turned out to be a jumper with a reindeer on it.
9 We were asked to help solve a neighbourly dispute - someone wanted to stop nearby residents talking to the postman as it was causing her dog to bark.
10 A displeased shopper called us to find out how she could make sure she only bought milk from happy cows.
A spokesman for the RSPCA said: “Although we may laugh at these stories, we need to remind people that the 24-hour advice and cruelty line is for reporting serious cases or emergencies concerning animal welfare.
“The cruelty and advice line operates in a similar way to the 999 emergency services number and non-urgent calls could prevent us from dealing with a serious crisis. Most of our calls are for rescues or develop into legal investigations.
“We do have a non-urgent enquiries line, 0300 1234 555, and there’s also lots of information on our website, www.rspca.org.uk”
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