The fox who decided to lilo in a back garden

This is the moment a fox cub was captured lounging on a lilo in an inflatable swimming pool.

The fox leapt onto the lilo in the 12ft-wide inflatable pool in the garden of John and Ann Barnes at their home in Croydon.

Mrs Barnes, 51, a learning and development consultant at Croydon council, said the fox seemed "right at home" on the water. She and her 52-year-old husband put the paddling pool in their garden for their grandchildren.

Mrs Barnes went on: "When we saw this fox sitting on the lilo it was such a surprise.

"He wasn't happy when John tried to get him off the lilo — he became all vicious like he wanted to stay where he was.

"John eventually managed to get the cub out of the pool, but it ended up falling into the water a couple of times before eventually jumping off and scampering into the bushes at the end of our garden."

The couple have now installed steps in their pool in case any other animals get into the pool and need to get out quickly.

Mrs Barnes added: "We get a lot of wild animals here, foxes and badgers and we once had a deer with its fawn in our back garden.

"My colleagues at work joke we'll open our window one day and see a herd of wildebeest there."