An exotic frog stowed away inside a suitcase and travelled from the US to Tyne and Wear – aided by an unwitting family.
The little frog – about the size of a ping-pong ball – jumped out as the Woods family unpacked their belongings after a trip to Florida.
Martin Woods said: “My wife was in hysterics when the frog jumped out of the suitcase.
“The children were amazed by it – you just don’t expect a stowaway to come out of your suitcase in the form of a frog!”
The family caught the frog and confined it in a bowl of water, then called the RSPCA.
Mr Woods, his wife Ruby and their children, Harry, eight, Oscar, six, and three-year-old Rory, had been staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge at Walt Disney World – an African-themed resort and zoo which is home to hundreds of animals and birds.
They think the frog might have ended up in swimming shorts which had been hung out to dry.
RSPCA animal collection officer Heather Barbour picked up the frog at the family’s home in Holystone and took it to a specialist vet where it was given a clean bill of health.
She said: “The vet, who keeps exotic frogs, has offered him a forever home.”
The RSPCA receives calls every summer from holidaymakers who have returned home to find lizards, crabs, frogs and even scorpions in their suitcases.
The charity suggests people carefully shake out clothes and check suitcases before packing to return home.
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