Abandoned Cockroaches Rescued By Island Roads Team In Cowes

A routine street cleaning round in Cowes turned into an unusual animal rescue after a group of abandoned Madagascan hissing cockroaches were discovered inside a discarded box.

The insects were found by Island Roads town cleaner Dan Legg while carrying out his rounds in the town.

After spotting a large white box left out as rubbish, Dan opened it to investigate — only to come face-to-face with a giant cockroach.

He quickly shut the lid to stop any escape attempts before contacting charge-hand Mandy Tomlinson for help.

Mandy said Dan was “not entirely thrilled” by the discovery and had never seen anything like it before.

After taking a closer look, Mandy realised the insects were Madagascan hissing cockroaches that had likely been abandoned as unwanted pets.

Island Roads then contacted Wildheart Animal Sanctuary, which agreed to take the creatures in.

It soon became clear there was more than one insect inside the box, with several cockroaches safely transported to the sanctuary for care.

Animal Manager Marc Fox said the cockroaches would undergo a quarantine period before eventually joining the sanctuary’s other insects.

He also praised the Island Roads team for stepping in to help and reminded pet owners to contact rescue organisations if they are struggling to care for animals.

The unusual rescue ended happily, with the cockroaches now settling into their new home by the sea — and Dan recovering from the shock of the encounter.