A THREE-legged hamster is back on the wheel after losing a limb to a freak accident.

Tiny Beth had to undergo surgery to amputate a foot and part of the leg after an inch-long piece of wire got wrapped round it.

Owner Victoria Wilkinson, 38, of Washington, Wearside, said: “Beth wasn’t coming out for her food so we picked her up and, to our horror, we found this piece of wire which seemed to have gone around her foot and up her leg.

“I tried to have a closer look and Beth started to squeal so we took her straight to (veterinary charity) PDSA.”

PDSA senior vet Lianne O’Brien, from Sunderland Pet Hospital, said: “It’s high risk to put a small animal like a hamster under anaesthetic, but we realised we had no choice but to amputate.

“We warned Beth’s owners that it would be a risky operation but thankfully everything went well and Beth has gone on to make a full recovery.”