WHEN Melissa Furey was a little girl growing up in the Atherton area she had one wish - to work for the RSPCA.

She did not understand that she could be an inspector, simply that she wanted to a job with them, protecting and caring for animals.

Now, more than 20 years later, she has her wish. Almost a year ago she underwent the rigorous training process that all RSPCA hopefuls must take to become fully fledged inspectors.

The only difference this time was that she and 18 of her classmates, who had left friends and family for seven months to become inspectors, were followed by a film crew. And the results can be seen on Sky TV's Animal Planet channel in a new series called RSPCA: Have You Got What It Takes.

Viewers will be able to discover how the 19 trainees - hand-picked from more than 1,000 applicants - do everything from learning how to handle 15-foot Burmese pythons to abseiling down cliffs, and getting thrown into the freezing waters of Snowdonia to swim 50 metres fully clothed.

And it is a safe bet that none of this military-type training was on Melissa's mind when she was a three-year-old tending her first pet, Bobtail the rabbit. "I just knew I loved animals," she recalled, "and that this was the job I wanted to do."

Her interest continued as a youngster through St Philip's CE Primary School in Atherton and St Mary's Secondary School in Astley, and a variety of pets, including her first pony at 10 - starting a horse riding hobby which took her to the highest level, representing Lancashire and appearing at Wembley and Hickstead.

When it came to careers' time, Melissa realised that she needed more life experience before she could be an RSPCA inspector, and joined the prison service. "I wanted a job where I could learn about people of all kinds, and this was very valuable," she explained.

But when the chance to train with the famous charity came up, Melissa, aged 24, was delighted when her application was accepted. She happily uprooted her life, and moved to RSPCA headquarters in Sussex to train for her dream job - discovering during the course of the abseiling that she was actually scared of heights!

The cameras proved an easier worry to overcome. "At first it was a bit of a shock that they were following us about, but we got used to it," she said.

And Melissa, like the other dedicated recruits there, was just keen to get on with her training and, hopefully, be accepted as an inspector.

After experiencing RSPCA work in both Leicester and Worcester, Melissa - now an inspector - was given her own patch last year: the busy Manchester and Salford area.

The charity has an office in Eccles, but Melissa spends her days on the road, travelling in the city centre and working on her own initiative.

Nor is the role exactly what you would expect. "I deal mostly with people, not animals," she said. "I would say that 90 per cent of my working day is about giving advice to people about how to care for their animals.

"Many people just don't realise when they take on a cat or a dog just what is involved in this responsibility. Sometimes when they do, they can't cope and need help, often for quite a long time."

Melissa has already had her fair share of cruelty cases - always upsetting - but feels that some people fail to realise that help is at hand through the RSPCA and the PDSA (People's Dispensary for Sick Animals) services which can help prevent problems reaching extreme levels. "We are here to fill in the gaps for them," added Melissa.

And she stressed that this is only part of a busy workload that sees her dealing with around 40 calls a day in an area second only to Leeds in its number of call-outs.

So, does the job live up to the childhood dream for this caring local lass? "Completely," she said. "It really is brilliant! Every day is different, and you just don't know what you will come across next.

"It is very rewarding when you see you have made a difference."

As to whether or not Melissa will turn out to be a viewers' favourite, she is happy to wait and see. "I was just myself during filming, as usual," she stated.

RSPCA: Have You Got What It Takes starts on Animal Planet on Monday, January 23 at 8pm.