An animal welfare inspector was called out to aid an injured bat lying on a bin ... only to find it was a discarded plastic toy

The Scottish SPCA received a call on its helpline saying the ailing bat was spread-eagled on a bin in Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire on Sunday.

Inspector Stacey Erwin dashed to the rescue only to discover the injured animal was in fact a life-like fruit bat toy made of moulded plastic.

Ms Erwin said: "The caller looked down from her window and saw a lifeless-looking bat on her bin.

"I went to check on it and expected to give advice on a grounded bat or maybe torn wings but discovered it was a plastic bat.

"The caller had realised [her mistake] shortly before I arrived but it was too late to cancel."

Ms Erwin added: "This job can be very tough as we deal with severely injured animals on a daily basis, so it's quite nice when something like this makes us smile.

"Last year, one of my colleagues responded to a report of a distressed bird stuck on a roof but when she arrived she discovered the bird was in fact a shoe.

"Although incidents like these are false alarms, it's always better to be safe than sorry and we'd encourage anyone with concerns about an animal to call our helpline on 03000 999 999."