IPSWICH: A blood-curdling shriek heralded an early-morning drama in Ipswich after a deer became trapped in a metal garden gate.

Pensioners Colin and Sheila Howes were fast asleep at home at Rye Close in Broke Hall when they were woken by screams in their back garden.

Mrs Howes said: “I woke up first, but then woke my husband and he went to find out what was happening.”

He knew it was not one of the family’s pet cats because they are shut in at night.

Mr Howes, 68, said: “I thought it might be a fox. We have have quite a lot of them around here on Broke Hall, but when I looked out I saw this small deer.” He thought it was probably a muntjac, which have become increasingly common throughout Suffolk in the last few years.

“It was very distressed and making a lot of noise,” he said. “We didn’t know what to do or who to call and after trying the RSPCA and vets we eventually called the fire service.

“The operator said they knew exactly what to do and they were up here very quickly. They spoke to a vet and then pulled the gate’s bars apart and the deer got out.

“It ran off down the road. I don’t know what happened to it then but I hope it doesn’t come back here,” Mr Howes added.

Although wildlife is quite common in the Broke Hall area, Mr Howes had never seen a deer in the area before.

“There are rabbits and foxes – we know about them and they have been disturbed by some of the development in the area, but I’ve never heard of deer around here,” he added.

n Have you had an unusual wildlife encounter? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or e-mail evening starletters@eveningstar.co.uk