First of all many apologies for the abscence of a winter news letter. The winter was not an easy time at Hallswood with such freezing temperatures but Lyz worked as always around the clock to ensure all the animals were warm and happy.

There have been many new arrivals at Hallswood over the last few months here are a few of their stories.

Easter is a rabbit found wandering Cawston Prk in a very weak condition. Approximately half the body weight he should have been he was too weak to run from the lady and her greyhound and just walked up to them and was easily caught. In this condition he was at huge risk from predators. He could not have been runing free for long as any local predator would have easily made him their next meal. Easter is recovering well but is looking for a sponsor if you would be interested please contact us.

A pheasant made an early morning arrival, a farmer kindly bought him in at 6.25am. He ha dbeen hit by a car and then set upon by local pheasants. Mr Pheasant is recovering well although will live out his days at the sanctuary ashe will not recover enough to be returned to the wild.

Spring is upon us....

Fledgeling season has started

So far we have taken in

Black birds, Starlings, Wrens, Seagulls, Collard Doves and Wood pigeons

Kitten season is also here..

We hae already had two pregnant cats arrive one has had 5 kittens the other is yet to give birth..

It is essential that cats are neutered to prevent pregnancies as rescue centres are all finding it hard to cope with the increasing number of cats looking for homes. Also please get your cats vaccinated against influensa, and FIV.

Hedgehog News

As the weather is improving we have been able to Release the first batch of hedgehogs this year. We use a soft release technique which give the hedgehogs the best chance of survival. They are put into hutches and runs in quiet and safe release sites and once acclimatised to their surroundings the runs are left open to allow the hedgehog free access. they can then be supported with access to food and shelter for as long as needed as they find and establish  their new terriotories.

We have 25 sites suitable for hedgehogs where an unrelated male and female hedghog have been located in soft release pens introducing new blood into each area supporting the genetic diversity of the hedgehog population.

Sites for release need to be quiet rural areas or gardens with wildlife areas in which no chemical pesticides/gardening products are used if you would like to take part in the soft release programme please conatct us in Autumn for information and a hut and run.

Recession news

Sadly with everyones budget tightening several problems are occurig more frequently with the animals coming in to Hallswood particularly with cats.

Grooming long haired cats daily is and exxential part of their health care or a trip to the groomers on a regular basis to prevent painful matting. Also with the weather warming up fly strike will become a problem, this is usually associated with rabbits but any animals with dirty/matted areas of fur can be affected with horrible results.

Four cats have arrived in a severely matted state since christmas some of which had to be anethisiatised to remove the matts, this could have been prevented with regular grooming by the owner or  a proffessional.

An increased number of severe cases of cats with hypothyroid  problems and diabetes have arrived. As treatment can be costly many people do not visit vets at the first signs of the conditions. Sadly this means when help is finally sought the animal is in a weakened state, often malnourished,and treatment is more costly and the likelyhood of a good outcome for the animal is reduced. Most of the health imlpications could be been prevented if early treatment had been provided please if you think theremay be a problem contact your vet and local sanctuaries and see if they can help. In the last year 11 severly affectd cats came in two have been lucky enough to find homes the rest live happily at Hallswood.

Wildlife advice

Fledgelings

Beofre picking up a baby bird unless it is in imminent danger please consider the following things:

Are the parents still around?

Watch the baby from a distance and look for signs of the parents visiting or in the vacinity

Is it is a secure garden/ place where the fledgling is safe from predators?

If there is no immediate threat leave the bird where it is and make sure you mintor the situation/contact a rescue centre first for advice before picking up the bird

Is the fledgeling feathered?

If featherless the baby will die of explosure during the day or hypothermia at night these fledglings should be picked up.

If feathered see if the bird is active and healthy ie could you catch it eaisly the way it is behaving? If you walk up to it (without touching it) can it move away from you swiftly? If it can escape you it can escape predators and if it ins in a safe environment should be left there.

Should you pick up the bird?

If you do pick up a young bird it will be abandoned by its parents so it is very important that you consider the birds situation before taking this course of action. Unless there is an immediate danger eg. predators, bird is at risk of being run over etc do not pick it up straight away contact a rescue centre for advise. Orphan babies wil be hand reared buy Hallswood but a natural life is of course the preferable option.

I had to pick it up what do I do now?

Put the bird in a ventilated box on soft bedding for example fleece/blanket/a jumper

Put the box in a warm quiet well ventilated place and leave the bird alone

Call a rescue centre

Do not give the bird food or water, until you know what speicies the bird is you will not be able to feed the correct food abd water can easily aspirate into the air sack drowing the bird. Aspiration of fluid will kill.

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO HAVE MINIMAL CONTACT - to birds we are a large predator and touching them or making noise around them will cause a lot of stress to the bird. Stress can kill so please keep all contact with wildlife to a minimum.

Deer Season

May, June and July are the breeding season for native deer. A doe can leave her fawn for upto 5 hours in between feeds. If you find a fawn/baby deer please do not approach or handle it unles sit is in immediate danger. Take note of where it is and retire to a safe distance and watch it's behavour.

If it is healthy it will have relaxed breathing and be curled up like a small dog staying still.

If flat on their side/gaping/breathing rapidly the baby deer coud be ill. If in doubt l;eave a message and we wil get back to you as soon as possible.

If you know a fawn is abandoned immediate advise should be sought.

Place the deer in a reasonably sized box with bedding that does not smell of domestic pets then place in a warm quiet dark well ventilated place and call us.

NO WILD ANIMAL FINDS IT COMFORTABLE TO BE STROKED/SPOKEN TO. HUMANS ARE A PREDATOR AND THE PRESCENCE OF WHICH WILL STRESS THE ANIMAL FURTHUR.