Gecko survives week in cold fridge after being packed in apple bag

A gecko survived a week in a fridge after accidentally ending up in a bag of apples.

Published: 8:00AM BST 02 Apr 2010

Wendy Newbury from Bideford, Devon found the small lizard-like creature when she took the last of the apples out of the bag in the fridge.

"This thing just fell out the bag and it looked dead," she said.

"It then must have started warming up and he started moving around.

"He was such a sweet and amazing little thing and me and my husband, Brian, are both animal lovers so we didn't want anything to happen to it."

Mrs Newbury said she had taken in stray cats and chickens before but wasn't sure what care a gecko needed.

So the couple put holes in a plastic container and took the gecko to Bideford's Torbridge Veterinary Centre.

Veterinary assistant Stephen Warren said the gecko was lively and appeared to be in good heath - particularly after spending a week refrigerated.

The gecko was named Gordon by staff after the fictional character, Gordon Gekko in the film Wall Street.

Mr Warren added: "It was a weird thing to find and a bit of a surprise for the couple.

"He seemed in good health but has a small injury on his tail, which is not surprising considering the trip he has had.

"This is the first time I've come across anything like this - I know you hear about spiders in bananas, but luckily I've never found a creepy crawly in my fruit or veg before."

The vets gave Gordon to the RSPCA, who will be able to offer him the specialist care he needs.

The vets believed the gecko probably originated in Asia meaning it may have travelled thousands of miles to get to North Devon.

Although the apples Wendy bought from Waitrose in Holsworthy say they're from Kent.

A spokesman for Waitrose added: "We take every care to protect our products at all stages of distribution and storage, supporting this with routine monitoring and checks.

"We're perplexed about this discovery as our apples are sourced and packaged in Kent. However, we are investigating with our supplier."

Mr Warren said: "If members of the public do find any weird or wonderful creatures like this, they should let vets or the RSPCA know, as some animals do have specialist requirement."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/7545077/Gecko-survives-week-in-cold-fridge-after-being-packed-in-apple-bag.html