A FROSTY feathered pet is hoping his owner comes forward to take him home after five days at a village veterinary practice.

The young cockatiel has been cared for at Clifton Lodge Veterinary Group, in Sedgefield, County Durham, since a villager rescued it from a roadside on Friday.

The small parrot, whose origins in Australia are a world apart from the chilly English winter it survived last week, had been earlier spotted flying around trees near Ceddesfeld Hall, last Thursday.

A villager then plucked the shivering and weak bird out of a gutter and handed it to staff at the practice, who have nursed it back to health and are appealing for the owners to come forward and claim it.

Sue Wears, of Clifton Lodge Veterinary Group, said: "He may be a house pet or have been kept in an aviary and escaped. He was lucky to survive the really cold weather we had at the end of last week, but we've warmed him through and now he's fit and well."

If you think this is your bird, call the practice on (01740) 622126 as soon as possible.