UK's most daring animal escapes of 2023 including emus, monkeys and skunks
This year has seen plenty of unusual animal escapes in the UK as some very exotic species attempted to make a new life in the wild.
Emus, monkeys and skunks are among those to have gone on the run in 2023, resulting in baffled responses from members of the public and hours of work for those unlucky enough to be tasked with finding them.
On several occasions the runaway animals have caused major traffic delays - inevitably leaving motorists who end up being late to work or an appointment with a hard-to-believe excuse as to what exactly was holding them up.
In October, a herd of 30 llamas and alpacas brought traffic to a halt on the A66 (Sky News)
(Sky News)Last month, staff and customers of a vets in Essex were left shocked when two huge emus wandered into the car park after breaking free from their owner's enclosure. Onlookers were left staggered by the giant birds' appearance outside the Edgewood Veterinary Group in Purleigh. Staff and others at the scene tried to locate the owners but "no one seemed to know anything" at the time, according to Essex Live, and they were temporarily taken in by the Maldon Promenade Petting Zoo.
The vets shared an update later the same week confirming the owners had been located - and the emu owners later told the BBC that strong winds had damaged the emus' enclosure, allowing them to escape. In April, a one-year-old emu named Rodney also forced his owner Jon Cardy to return home early from his first holiday in years after jumping over the fence and running away, before later being found safe.
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Two escaped emus appeared outside a vets in Essex (Edgewood Veterinary Group)A monkey escaped from its enclosure at Paignton Zoo back in August with visitors evacuated while workers tried to recapture the animal. Witnesses at the scene say a "code red" was put in place at the attraction in Devon while the primate was on the loose, and it was eventually discovered hiding among the rhinos. The rhino enclosure was sealed off and a re-capturing mission was launched in the aftermath. A spokesperson said at the time: "As a precautionary measure, zoo visitors were evacuated from the area in accordance with our well-rehearsed escaped animal procedure and the animal was re-captured without incident shortly after the alert was raised."
In October, a herd of 30 llamas and alpacas brought traffic to a halt on the A66 as they bolted down the busy road, with the farmer only finding out they had escaped from a customer buying sausages. The domesticated farm animals, native to South America, spilled onto the A66 shortly after breaking free, where he said they started to head in the direction of Penrith. Intruiging footage shared by motorists showed the herd running down the centre of the road in formation, with some drivers getting out of their vehicles to have a closer look at what exactly was coming towards them.
The same month, a skunk named Wiggy went missing from his home in Witham, Essex - and he still remains at large, despite numerous sighting. Owner Kim Shelley told the BBC that one-year-old Wigg was "a bit of a character" who "loves a cuddle" and said he had never emitted a foul smell. She said she left chicken legs in nearby allotments in an attempt to lure him back, but to no avail. Wiggy was recently spotted in the Tiptree and Messing area of the county.
Finally, a very festive animal escape came on December 3 when two reindeer blocked a dual carriageway in Suffolk, causing major delays. Having fled from a Christmas grotto at Elveden Estate, National Highways East said the reindeer had been spotted by motorists road, with police officers dispatched to the area to try and catch them before suspending their search overnight. The two antlered runaways, later identified as Blue and Blitzen, were reunited with the grotto the following day.
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