Wildlives Success

This has been a phenomenal year for Wildlives - not only is the number of admissions up (again), but our success rate of returning animals and birds to the wild is now even higher - around 90%. This is an unprecedented achievement for wildlife rescue, and everyone at Wildlives is very proud. This is only possible due to the hard work and dedication of our volunteers. Happy New Year to you all!

Albert the Destroyer After the R.S.P.C.A. received a report of a badly injured fox, Wildlives set a cage trap. Shortly afterwards, the fox was caught, and brought to the centre by Animal Collection Officer Donna. He was very ill; he not only had severe mange, but also serious and extensive wounds to his rear leg and face, especially his mouth. These wounds appeared to have been inflicted by a dog attack - perhaps he had fallen easy prey due to the debilitating effects of the mange. The lacerations and deep puncture wounds into the muscle had become badly infected, and needed veterinary treatment. After the vet had cleaned the wounds and inserted a drain, he returned to the centre where he was named Albert - his gummy appearance reminded everyone of the character of that name in the TV series Steptoe and Son. This was soon amended to Uncle Albert, as his appearance belies his age - he is only a young fox, probably from a litter last year. He has made brilliant progress, and has now had the stitches and drain removed. The mange has been treated, and we are waiting for the fur to grow before he is released. He is whiling away the time while he waits by taking over where Aragorn left off - the pen is now reinforced by an eclectic collection of boards and braces, where Albert has practically chewed through the beams. In all the years Wildlives has been operating hundreds of foxes have passed through, but in terms of damage Aragorn and Albert have exceeded all the others collectively. Hopefully Albert will soon be released back to where he was caught. Aragorn was successfully released by ACO Donna, who was thrilled as he ran off, his dreadful leg and pelvic injuries fully repaired, only to turn one last time and look back before disappearing

Oiled Kingfisher A kingfisher was brought to a local vets, covered in oil after being found at Colchester Hythe. He responded well to washing and treatment, but unfortunately the internal poisoning proved too severe, and sadly he died. Fowl play for Partridge A red legged partridges was brought to Wildlives. He had been found after being hit by a car by a well-meaning person who put him in with the chickens. The next time he looked, the chickens had blinded and scalped the partridge, who was then brought to Wildlives. He has since regained sight, but this serves as a salutary warning - wild animals should never be put with domestic animals or pets, as both are likely to find this stressful, and stress is a major killer of injured wildlife.

Newsletter editor: kathy.jinkings@ntlworld.com

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