AN INQUISITIVE kitten was saved by a team of firefighters after getting her head stuck in the back of a television cabinet.

The 12-week-old pet, aptly named Shock Waves, was found peering through an inch-wide cable hole in the back of the furniture.

But after a dramatic rescue mission involving four firefighters from Medway fire station, the mischievous kitten is frolicking around as if nothing had happened.

Her owner, cat breeder Anna Gregory, was settling down to watch television with her husband Brian at their home in Hempstead Road, Gillingham, when she noticed her litter of Selkirk Rex kittens crowding round the back of the television.

She said: "I got up to see what was going on and couldn't believe it when I saw Shock Waves poking through the back of the cabinet. I am quite good at manipulating things because I have helped deliver litters of kittens, so I tried to wriggle her head free.

"We tried to push her head through the hole but it wouldn't move. This is my first litter of Selkirk Rex and I'm really protective of them. I was thinking the worst and was so worried and didn't know what to do."

Mrs Gregory called an emergency vet for help but was advised to call the fire and rescue service. Station manager Jim Ramsden arrived at the house and assessed the situation before calling for back-up from the Red Watch crew.

He said: "We dismantled the cabinet and tried to get the kitten free, but in the end we had to use a small saw and cutting tools to free her. It took us about 15 minutes and she was never in any danger. It was just a matter of cutting away precisely around the kitten."

Mrs Gregory said: "They were great. We had to stop two or three times because she started having panic attacks, but eventually they cut her free."