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We have had some unusual casualties over the past few weeks. This started on our last open weekend in November when a bearded dragon was handed in having been found in a garden in Burnham on Sea. It’s a good job that we can find out through contacts, how to look after these animals that suddenly descend upon us !

Luckily having been given a clean bill of health, it looks like it will be able to go to Bristol Zoo which will be fantastic. It is a female so maybe she will have a friend to be with.

Only a few days after that, a King Snake was found in another garden locally and has still not been claimed. Do people really turn out pets when they don’t want them? It’s so cruel, especially in this cold weather that we have been having.

Another unusual call out was in the middle of the night when we were asked to attend a police raid that had found a Spotted Eagle Owl in unsuitable conditions. Lisa was on duty that night and finally got home around 4 a.m. The owl has been signed over to us now by the owner and its jessies held on by nuts and bolts have been replaced by proper leather fittings.

He is very quiet and it is hoped that in time, he will join our other birds that go out to talks. One of our volunteers is going to have him in her own aviary so that she can give him more time. He certainly is a very spectacular bird that, we hope, will be happy in his new home.

Another middle of the night call was the police that collected a young swan sitting on the hard shoulder of the M5, around junction 27. The swan had probably been confused with all the ice and snow. He was due to be taken back to the canal near there last Sunday but after travelling all the way down there, it was found the canal was still frozen so he had to come back! We’ll try again once the mild weather is with us again.

Two separate incidents involving ducks were brought in over Christmas, both having been shot. One sadly had to be put to sleep because of its injuries but the other one is looking a lot better. A hedgehog that came in on Boxing Day had a horrendous wound to its back and I just gave it pain relief after cleaning the wound. It looked very deep so I did not do too much to it. It went to the vets so that it could be treated under anaesthetic but the wound was found to be right down to the spinal chord it was beyond help.

It has been the first Christmas for me to have orphans in the kitchen. Toni has been getting better at swimming and Boxing Day was the first time that I trusted them to be together. Puddle is so much bigger but Toni can now give as good as she can get!! From the shy cub too small to go swimming, to a shy cub grasping the shower hose she is now as adept as Puddle in under water swimming.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next week they should be out in the Millie block with water available to them all the time and the cubby hole will fall quiet until the next casualties arrive.

 

 

They’re not the only ones swimming over Christmas as we made our Winter Warmer Dip in the Sea on Sunday December 27^th  at Lyme Regis. We had a lovely crowd cheering on as 5 brave souls ( including a dog ) made a dash for the sea. The sun may have been shining but it was definitely freezing in the water!

On December 28^th, Simon was called out to a badger digging incident. Details below. I cannot believe that people can find any sort of enjoyment from this sport. Sadly legislation does not stop these criminals. We do all that we can to protect our wildlife but sometimes it just does not feel enough. 

May 2010 be a happy and healthy one for you. With your help, we hope that we shall stop as much suffering as we can to our wildlife in 2010.

Three men with dogs were seen carrying out a badger dig that was taking place around 8 a.m. near Gold Corner Pumping Station, East Huntspill on Monday December 28th. They were disturbed by a gentleman taking his dog for a walk who was unfortunately walking on the opposite side of the river. He was alerted by the screams of the badger being killed These men ran off and drove away in a white van with green lettering on the side and back although sadly no registration number was visible. This incident was reported to Secret World Wildlife Rescue and has since also been reported to the police.

Pauline Kidner, founder of Secret World Wildlife Rescue, said:

“We have been made aware that persecution is now at the level that it was when the legislation was brought in to protect the badger in 1992. That was the reason for that legal protection as it is estimated that over 10,000 badgers are killed in this way annually.  This is the third incident of badger persecution in the area reported to Secret World this month. I can only imagine the pain that the badger in this incident must have suffered until it finally died.”

Anyone who is suspicious of actions of people in the countryside or have information regarding people who take part in this sickening sport should contact the police immediately or Secret World on Tel: 01278 783250

Secret World Wildlife Rescue is a charity that cares for over 4000 wildlife casualties annually.   It is run purely on donations. For many years Secret World has campaigned for badgers which still remain a much maligned creature.

Less than 2 weeks to go to Christmas and we are receiving some lovely Christmas cards from many of our supporters. With a very wet Christmas Fayre at the end of November, the decorations are already up and we are getting into the Christmas Spirit.

Some of our long term casualties have been released which is always brilliant. A buzzard rescued by one of our response drivers came in on November 16^th. The buzzard was suffering from concussion and had gone blind but we were hoping that the sight would come back. After several days we were worrying that he was still unable to see and Lisa, our vet nurse, noticed that the pupils of his eyes were dilating with the change of light. We all crossed our fingers – and within 2 days his sight was back. He had a couple of weeks in an aviary to build up muscle and finally went for release about a week ago.

We also had a badger in for several weeks, again suffering from concussion. He had arrived during the night, was put on a drip and for many days seemed completely out of it. After a few days of not eating, he was tube fed with honey, complain and egg which he took very well and he was soon on the road to recovery. Again, he was released last week so hopefully will be with his family for Christmas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa, our vet nurse, is buzzing around with so much going on in the last few days that she will be with us. She is off to Australia for at least a year and we are all going to miss her. I’m sure she will have great time down under but we hope she won’t forget us – qualified veterinary nurses with so much wildlife knowledge are hard to find.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The otter cubs are doing well. Tiny Toni is also learning to swim but she gets to bath on her own as Puddle is too full of energy. She’s swimming a bit like I do with her head held high above the water (!) but each day she becomes more confident. Puddle is full of it and the water often slops over the side of the bath where she moves so fast now chasing toys and retrieving shells. Bath time ends when she pulls the plug out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don’t think Tiny Toni much enjoyed having a wet bed mate after Puddle’s baths but now they both go in and so they squirm together in the towel to get dry. This is usually followed by playtime until it’s time for a sleep.

 

Tonight is the first time the lights will be on in the otter enclosure so hopefully you should be able to see Hope and Ozzy playing in their pond on Web cam 4.

 

Puddle has been joined by a small otter cub that was rescued near to Nailsea. This is the third cub in three weeks so there must be many otter cubs that have been washed out of their holts with the rising river levels.

 Tiny Toni, as she has been nicknamed, is standing her ground very well. Although about three weeks younger than Puddle, they are fine together. Otter cubs are like badger cubs – they play hard but I would soon know from the noises if the play was too rough! Tiny Toni has a small bottle of milk before her fish which she basically manages to eat with her few teeth by chewing hard and ragging it around the floor.

 

Puddle is now enjoying her baths but Tiny Toni will have to wait a while as she is still very fluffy.

 Clinton Rogers came and did some filming today for BBC’s regional news so I’m sure people will find them enchanting. Tiny Toni makes the most of Puddle as a super soft mattress!

Secret World would like to thank our supporters who braved the bracing sea at Lyme Regis on Sunday 27th December 2009 and raised in the region of £1000 which will help us continue our vital work.   Join us for this exhilarating event  in 2010… details to follow later in the year.