Lost and lonely: The baby otter was hungry and dehydrated. It is now being looked after by the RSPCA A petrified housewife tiptoed downstairs to confront what she thought was a noisy burglar in her kitchen only to find - a little orphaned baby otter.
Sheila Manisier , 44, discovered the three-month-old mammal foraging for scraps after her daughter Laura Manisier-Hilton, 13, heard noises at their home.
Brave Sheila crept into the kitchen fully expecting to find an intruder but instead spotted the foot-long juvenile otter cowering underneath her kitchen table.
Healthcare manager Sheila fed the female otter a £10 piece of raw cod and has now handed it over to the RSPCA.
Sheila, who believes the otter entered the house in Taverham, Norfolk, through an open back door said she 'couldn't believe' her eyes.
She said: 'When I first saw it I thought it could be a rat but when I got closer I saw the brown fur and long tail and realised it was something else.
'I've never seen an otter in the wild before, let alone under my kitchen table so it was such a shock.
'It was so lucky it came into our home because we are real animal lovers and so I had a dog crate in the garage which I was able to put it into.
'I'd also been shopping that morning so had a lovely piece of raw cod in the fridge, which the otter jumped on and gobbled up so quickly.
Night-time surprise: Sheila Manisier, with daughter Laura (right) and au pair Larisa Ionita. She is holding the bowl she unsuccessfully tried to get the otter to drink from 'I put out a bowl of water for it to drink as well but it didn't understand it could drink it and instead tipped it over and rolled in it.
'We are still finding it hard to believe that it happened, but feel very privileged that it did.' Sheila and keen horse rider Laura, who live with Romanian au pair Larissa Ionita, 22, heard their dogs barking at 11.45pm on Monday.
She was concerned that a burglar may have entered the property but was relieved to discover the otter.
The RSPCA are now caring for the kitten at East Winch rehabilitation centre in King's Lynn, Norfolk.
A spokeswoman for the RSPCA revealed that the otter is 'very young' and should have remained with her parents until she was one year old.
She said: 'The otter has been examined by a vet. She is quite poorly and very dehydrated and has been given fluids and antibiotics.
'We have no idea how it came to be in the home, but juvenile otters can be naive and can get into all kinds of trouble if they wander away from their mum.'
source: dailymail
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