THE work of Thurrock's treasured wildlife hospital has again been highlighted by a story of staff going the extra yard to save an animal in distress.

A tiny fox cub found horrifically covered in black tar has made a remarkable recovery thanks to the work of the team at South Essex Wildlife Hospital in Orsett and has now been released back into the wild.

Shocking pictures showed the terrified animal covered in bitumen before being rescued by wildlife lovers.

The incident, described by animal rescuers as "one of the most horrific cases" in years, came after the cub fell into a container of bitumen in north-east London earlier this year.

For more than four hours he fought to escape before workers finally heard his cries.

But when they pulled him out, his ordeal only got worse - he was stuck to piece of road.

In a post on Facebook, the team at the hospital recalled: "The adhesion was so strong that one mis-timed pull could have easily broken a leg or worse and he was so encased that he was even unable to urinate until the area was cleared."

After taking the cub to hospital, staff made a late-night dash to Tesco to buy baby oil to soften the bitumen, working until 2am scrubbing the fox.

Days later came setbacks, when vets discovered the cub had fractured his leg - before specialist surgeons performed an hours-long operation.

After three months of washes, surgery and round-the-clock care, the little fox was finally strong enough to be released back into the wild.

In an update, the hospital team said: "It's taken countless washes and a very complex surgery to get him back on his feet, but his final leap to freedom makes every single second worth it!

"The end of an era... good luck little fox. Keep out of trouble!"