Eight to go

Curiosity nearly killed the kitten when Milo climbed into his owner's washing machine.

Eight-week-old Milo was hoping for a cat-nap at Ginny Troth's house in Redditch, Worcestershire, when he settled down on her laundry.

But Mrs Troth, who had been searching for Milo, unwittingly switched on the machine for a spin wash.

Mrs Troth said it was only then that she realised where he might be.

'I just felt sick,' she said. 'I switched it off immediately and put it on to drain and started to pull out washing.

'He just appeared out of the middle of it and was in a pretty poor state.

'My daughter and I were both hysterical. We wrapped him in a towel and took him to the vet.'

Milo could not open his eyes, had water on his lungs and was hypothermic.

Vets feared the worst - but he had used up only one of his nine lives. "