Drama in the veg patch this morning!

Well done . . . perhaps he will stay around, and then you’ll be able to say you have adopted a “rescue “ slow worm!

I try to avoid using plastic netting any lower than 6" as many years ago I found a dead hedgehog entangles in it. Slow worms are amazing and well done for rescuing it.

When I was a kid we used to catch them on the North Downs hills. We once brought a pregnant one home & had tiny slow worms coming out from under the settee.
Happy days but I wish I knew better...
We also filled a transit van with about 500 grasshoppers. Maybe there's an upside to kids being online all the time? They won't be pulling the wings off flies?

thinking about it, she must have realised you were trying to help as they cast their tails when caught/held by it. Hubby must have had a gentle touch.

they are beautiful lizards aren't they. I would love to find them in the garden. Saw a good number of them at Parc Slip and Kenfig when visiting daughter.

Well done for rescuing it without damage. I've not seen one wild since childhood games, playing on the compost heap.

We do have lots of them round here Sheila - there are two living in a compost bin at present - they seem to like the warmth form the rotting stuff, especially lawn mowings that heat up so quickly. But I know "ours" is one of them now!
Seaburn I will do the same from now on! There is actually a house near here called "Slowworms' Nest" so not surprising you saw some at Kenfig. Have you seen baby ones? They are bright silver and move like lightening!
OH says that far from shedding its tail it curled it round his thumb!

Darren, thank goodness you know better now! Did you manage to put the babies somewhere sage?

Siris yes they do seem to like compost!

wow! I have never seen a Sloworm! Well done! :)

I've just googled Slow-worm - I'd have run a mile! Well, maybe a yard or two.....Well done!

Yes when I was visiting Victoria we went to Parc Slip and she showed me the slow worms there and there were about 8 babies, newly born. amazing lizards, they don't lay eggs but retain them inside and give birth. Boy did they move fast when disturbed.

Glad you were able to rescue it. I have only once seen a slow worm & that was in the 1950' s in Sussex, tho' I'm sure they are around in Surrey somewhere, just not in my garden.

Well Feverfew that may just mean you have a tidy garden!

A local cat (now deceased) used to lie in wait and catch them - it was so funny seeing him walking home with one dangling each side of his mouth, rather like a puffin with a fish! Sad as well though.

Sunnydais I think that's an inbuilt reaction for humans because of snakes. But these little legless izards are quite benign, and dry and warm to the touch so its quite easy to overcome your first reaction once you get used to the idea! I had never touched one before but sympathy and a feeling that its predicament was my fault made it easy to do it.

What a story!! Glad there are no photos.

Oh gosh I wouldn't have known what to do, Stera , think I would have run away because actually I've never seen one either, well done both of you, now off to visit Google.... Okay I know for definite now that I would have ran away..

For those of you who say you haven't seen one, perhaps you live in an area where they are absent or rare. Distribution map here: https://www.arc-trust.org/slow-worm

Lincs I don't think you would have run away if its predicament was because of your carelessness leaving the netting about. I did feel hesitant at first but once I got started all that disappeared. It felt so warm and alive all my hesitation evaporated. When its head was at last freed it looked up at me and it amazingly had sparkly blue eyes, really beautiful. I'm sure it knew I was helping it.

I only ever saw a couple when I was a boy & went to a small seaside town on the East Essex coast on holiday. Never seen them since.

I had never seen one at all before we came here