The funniest mistakes of concerned animal rights activists (16 photos)

After a recent curious incident in which a British woman nursed a hat pom-pom all night, mistaking it for a sick hedgehog, representatives of the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) spoke about other similar blunders. Quite an impressive list!





The Pom Pom Woman isn't the only one who has let her laudable desire to care for animals override her common sense. There have been many other people who have made mistakes with the best of intentions.



RSPCA inspector Dale Grant received a call about a dog tied to a boat on the Grand Union Canal in Hayes, west London, "whining and crying." Concerned about the fate of the animal, the inspector rushed to save it and discovered that a toy tiger was tied to the bow of the boat.





In a typical case, the RSPCA were called to Workington, Cumbria, after a woman thought she had spotted a king cobra on a chair in her garden. Animal rescuer Martin Fletcher arrived on the scene to find that the snake was plastic and had been brought in by neighbors' children. The toy was returned to its owners.



RSPCA officer Lisa Miller was dispatched to Woolwich, south-east London, following a call from a woman about a bird entangled in a flagpole. But when she arrived at the scene, she discovered that it was not a live bird, but a plastic bird repellent.



RSPCA officer Graham Hammond rushed to the River Stour in Dorset after a passing motorist reported seeing a swan stuck in an electric fence. However, when the rescuer arrived on the scene, he discovered that the “swan” was a white plastic chair floating in the water. Just an optical illusion!



RSPCA animal rescue officer Shane Lynn was very concerned when he received a call from a woman reporting a duck stuck in the ice. The caller claimed that the bird had been stuck in the frozen pond two days ago and could not move. Mr Lynn braved the icy conditions to travel to Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, to help the injured bird - only to discover it was not a duck but a plastic decoration.



Residents in Grantham, Lincolnshire were left extremely concerned when they discovered a bright red scorpion on the pavement. RSPCA animal collection officer Paula Jones arrived at the cordoned off area to find upset people surrounding the rubber toy. “Cecil the Scorpio is now my buddy and keeps me company on the road,” Paula said.



One concerned woman reported seeing an injured lizard in London's Hackney. The “lizard” ended up being an elephant-shaped dog chew toy.



One concerned citizen reported a dead dog on the roof of a church in Port Talbot, which turned out to be a stuffed animal.



The toy was quite large and cute. She was truly treated cruelly!



Concerned members of the public reported an injured owl, which turned out to be a gray heart-shaped pillow.



In another case, residents of the London area of Stoke Newington reported that someone had thrown the skin of a cat into the street. RSPCS staff rushed to check and even found “remains” covered with a towel. Fortunately, it turned out to be just a fur hat.



And one woman from Warrington, Cheshire, was horrified by the sight of the headless swan and called the RSPCA to report it. But it turned out that it was a plastic figurine. "We all had a good laugh about the incident and were honestly relieved that it wasn't a swan that had met a terrible death," Inspector Claire Fisher said.



In another surprising swan incident, several people reported an injured swan to the RSPCA in Thornton-le-Dale, North Yorkshire. The bird allegedly did not move and did not appear frightened by people or vehicles. The inspector who came to the call could not find the swan for a long time until he realized that it was a group of five decorative wooden swans that were exhibited for Christmas.



And finally, someone called and reported a bird in a tree that was either injured or “stuck.” Which was not far from the truth, since it turned out that there was a kite stuck in the branches of the tree.



“Every day at the RSPCA is different and our staff are used to responding to heart-wrenching calls, being involved in breathtaking rescues and the occasional laugh-out-loud situation,” says RSPCA Assistant Director of Inspection Dermot Murphy. — From soft toys to decorative models, our employees helped everyone.

And while we all love a good laugh this time of year, there's a serious message here too. Every year we have more and more work to do to save animals that desperately need us. Everyone who has called us, even by mistake, has genuine concerns that an animal is in distress, and we rely on people to be our eyes and ears and let us know when they think an animal is in distress. Perhaps these errors are just a reminder to take a closer look before picking up the phone. However, fortunately, such oddities do not happen often, and we would like to thank everyone who takes the time to inform us about the suffering of animals and helps us make the world a kinder place.”