A mischievous jackdaw has been adopted by a village vet.

The bird, named Jack, was taken to Avril Lees after falling out of a tree as a two-month-old fledgling.

And now he is very much part of the family and treats Mrs Lees' house as a second home.

Jewellery has gone missing, drawers have been turned out and cleaners driven to the point of distraction by his plug pinching antics.

Jack's madcap lifestyle has landed him in a few scrapes.

Pecking at caps left him dazed after they exploded in his face and he has been shut in the bedroom door.

His first mishap was falling out a tree in Thorpe-le-Soken as a featherless fledgling. He was picked up by a thankfully friendly bulldog.

He was then found by someone who knew Mrs Lees and was driven across to Wickham St Paul near Halstead for treatment.

Mrs Lees said: "Jack was about two months old when he was brought in to the surgery, he imprinted on me and has been around ever since."

The cheeky jackdaw uses the dogflap to come and go.

"He comes in the bedroom and the shower and has got tremendously brave," said Mrs Lees.

"Jack gets on well with the family pets. He eats out of the cat's bowl and chases the dog off the sofa."

Jack shows no fear of anything and often joins Mrs Lees for a cup of tea and a ginger nut biscuit as a breakfast-in-bed treat. But it is this fearless bravado which gets him into trouble.

"One day he was chased by a sparrowhawk and was really panicking," said Mrs Lees.

"One of the nurses opened the dispensary door, he flew in and the sparrowhawk hit into the window."

Jack has won the heart of Mrs Lees. She said: "Jack really has survived it all and he is definitely part of the family. He can be a bit hazardous but I wouldn't be without him."

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.