Runaway bull 'may have fled backstreet abattoir'

A bull found loose on the streets of Birmingham may have "escaped from a backstreet slaughterhouse", an animal sanctuary said.

After being detained on Friday, the animal was taken 170 miles away to The Hillside Sanctuary in Frettenham, Norfolk, and given the name "Liam" in a nod to new Norwich City boss Liam Manning.

The site's owners said he was very stressed when he arrived there in the middle of the night, but has calmed down now.

The sanctuary said it had liaised with police, and efforts were being made to find out more about Liam's background and the possibility that he ran away from an abattoir.

The Hillside Sanctuary often gets calls from supporters across the country, but the one that came in on Friday was quite unusual.

A caller said a bull was loose on the streets of Digbeth in Birmingham.

The sanctuary said its phone then kept buzzing with more people wanting to get in contact about the bolting bovine.

Ricky Holland from Hillside said: "We liaised with the police up there - they had him cornered in a car park apparently.

"They think that he's broke out of a backstreet slaughterhouse up there.

"He was obviously contained somewhere which wasn't safe for him, and he's broke out and we're very grateful that we've got him at the sanctuary where he can spend the rest of his days."

The BBC has contacted the police for comment.

Mr Holland said he was glad the media had picked up the bull's story because, with Liam being a dangerous animal and protection of the public being the priority, the outcome could have been completely different.

A spokesperson for Birmingham City Council said it was “unable to confirm whether the bull had escaped from an abattoir".

“The council did its part in ensuring the animal was contained and it was safe and unharmed and the police then dealt with the matter further," they said.

Although there are 750 rescued cattle at the sanctuary, Liam, who is thought to be about two years old, is being kept on his own at the moment.

"We're gently trying to let him de-stress," said Mr Holland. "You've got to appreciate what he's gone through, it must be very traumatic.

"The first night, we got back at 2:45 in the morning, and he was really stressed, but he's slowly coming out of that now."

Mr Holland added that there might be a bit more stress to come for Liam before he can properly relax.

He continued: "He's got to be castrated, and that'll be a week or two weeks to heal up properly and then he'll come in [a field] with some cattle.

"He'll have a wonderful life here, he'll have no worries whatsoever."

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