3x Wildlife Assistant Summer Placements

'We are currently advertising for three summer wildlife assistants and we are listing it at StopDodo online at www.environmentjobs.com and on the RSPCA website http://bit.ly/1454kBG

Stapeley receives its first fox cub of the season

Stapeley has received its first fox cub of the season via an RSPCA inspector from a park in Birmingham. The little female weighed in at only 221g.  She had been observed for several hours before being termed 'abandoned' and on closer examination she also was found to have a wound in her right arm pit - help was therefore needed.  Estimated to be 9 days old her brown coat resembled more of a domestic puppy than fox cub.

Contact with all our foxes is kept to a minimum and staff are well aware of the need to keep the noise to a minimum - it is essential that we avoid imprinting and keep them wild - which can be hard at times but it is in the cub’s best interest.  A CCTV camera links in to our education room so we and our visitors have a great opportunity to observe the cub without disturbing her.  Check her out feeding on U-Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvjBWwacKqk

She is syringe fed six times a day with a puppy milk formula which she takes eagerly. A damp piece of cotton wool is then used to imitate mum stimulating her to pass urine and faeces.  To heal the wound we clean it and apply treatment as well as giving a course of medication.  It is then back to the incubator to snuggle up to a soft toy and nap until the next feed.  In the next couple of months we expect the arrival of many more fox cubs a few of which she will be grouped and eventually released with.   

Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery

To donate to Stapeley text: STAP70 £2 to 70070

Mothers Day Mice

Mothers day can bring cards, flowers and chocolates but at Stapeley I received an un-traditional but some-what fitting for the day four baby wood mice. A member of public had found the nest in a tent whilst clearing out their garage to move home. Even though they were found inside they were easily identified as wood mice with their long back legs, mid brown coat colour and a white belly.  

I weighed each orphan and moved them into a new, luxury incubator with a towel. Once they had warmed up a little I gave them their first feed, a few drops each of a special milk formula, enough to just fill their tiny tummies.  They are now fed every 2 hours and after each meal are encouraged to go to the toilet - as unable to urinate or defecate without the assistance of their mother stimulating them. This is done with a damp cotton bud lightly and quickly wiping around the genitals. Not the nicest of jobs but there is a sense of achievement when you can get them to go! 

Despite their eyes still being closed they are still very fast and wriggly. Back in their incubator they snuggle up together and just like most babies nap until it is time for their next feed.  We will care for them until they are old enough and can be released at an appropriate site. Until then at least we do not have to cope with sleepless nights and tantrums! 

                                                   

   Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery

To donate to Stapeley text: STAP70 £2 to 70070

Feeding a fallen feral pigeon

With the weather getting warmer and the arrival of spring Orphan Room will soon be full of nestlings all requiring and demanding specialist care. Walking into orphan room today I noticed an incubator had been set up and inside were two feral pigeon nestlings squeaking at me expectantly. 

Unfortunately they had fallen from their nest outside a supermarket in Chester, possibly a bit too keen to start exploring. In this case they could not be returned to the nest and would have been vulnerable to predation if left alone so they were brought in to us. Normally they would get pigeon milk which is regurgitated food from their mother- they don’t complain about eating their greens!

Not yet old enough to eat solids on their own we need to crop tube them which is syringe a specialised formula directly into their crop. At the moment they are fed 4 times a day but as they grow this will be reduced to three times then twice daily at larger quantities. The orphans will be tube fed until they start pecking and eating seed on their own.  Each time before tube feeding their crop is checked to see if they have digested the mixture from the previous feed or have started eating so they are not given too much.

                                        

Once they are ready they will be released at a suitable site with plenty of food resources and shelter to give them a good start and a better chance of survival.   

                                                   

   Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery

To donate to Stapeley text: STAP70 £2 to 70070

Daring dentistry

No one likes going to the dentist but if left tooth problems can become worse and cause further difficulties. In wildlife this is more serious as it effects their survival if it causes infection or they are unable to eat.  A badger was brought in by an RSPCA Inspector for abnormal behavior, he had been found dazed and ataxic i.e. wobbly on his feet.  He was placed in a pen for observation overnight and allowed to settle and rest.  The following day a general anesthetic was given by the vet, which enabled the vet to carry out a proper examination and x-ray.  No fractures were found but there was an infection in his nose which led to the vet finding a major tooth problem. A closer look revealed his upper left canine tooth was cracked and the root had been left exposed, this had lead to a nasty tooth abscess- no wonder he felt rotten!

Although quite an extensive operation the missing canine would not make much of a difference to the badger once back in the wild.  If the tooth was left it may lead to further infection, a lot of pain and potentially death.  My work in the hospital was almost complete so I was given the chance to observe the procedure, which was fascinating. It is very rare to see dentistry on a badger.  It gave me the chance to really see how large badgers canine are and the extent of the damage.

Captivity is always stressful for wildlife so the team are always looking to return our animals, back to the wild as quickly as possible, as soon as they are fit and healthy.  Therefore after a few days of recovery he was given a long lasting antibiotic and quickly released back to where he came from - minus the tooth and no visit from the tooth fairy!

                                                   

   Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery

Getting a Kite to fly again

When a member of the public arrived with what they thought was a Buzzard I did not realize how significant it would turn out to be. I was informed the bird had been seen to spiral out of the sky and crash land into an electric fence in a field where they rescued it. As soon as we took it out of the box for observation we knew it was not a Buzzard, from its colouring and wing pattern we identified that it was in fact a Red Kite!

                                       

It was understandably in shock, had a bit of blood around the mouth and raspy breathing - it was treated and left it in peace to recover overnight.  When the Red Kite was x-rayed as part of its vet check, it was us who got the shock as 8 shots were found in it - including two in the head!

                                 

It is incredible how this bird survived, looking at it now, you would never know the ordeal it had gone through. Our vets were understandably concerned about the head injuries.  Perfect health and 'spot on' vision are essential for these top predators to catch prey and survive in the wild. 

When the Red Kite was rechecked yesterday the sight in the left eye had greatly improved and its general condition was such that we were given the green light to take the Red Kite out into one of our outdoor aviaries to see how well it flies.  The next few days will be spent monitoring its progress; I will keep you updated on this extraordinary bird’s progress.

                                             

To see the news article click on this link   http://blogs.rspca.org.uk/regionalnews/?s=red+kite

                                                  

   Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre

What skills do you have?

Every year Stapeley has over 6000 admissions into its Wildlife Centre and Cattery, the cost of their care and running the Centres reaches £800,000!  With no government funding to finance these costs we rely on generous donations and legacies. These are generated Stapeleys fundraising and education team in attending events and promoting the Centre.

    

On Thursday I helped at the recruitment evening to encourage new volunteers to join the support group. Community fundraiser Chedia gave a presentation on why funds are needed, what we do and how they could get involved.

The group has monthly meetings to arrange events at Stapeley (such as the successful Christmas fair) and in the local area to raise funds and awareness.

                 

There is a variety of roles to utilise everyone’s unique skills in event planning, publicity or education- there is something for everyone!  Now the group’s success has started gathering momentum more help is needed to keep it moving forward to enable Stapeley to continue its fantastic work.

                          

If you wish to offer your skills and time to help us fundraise or in the Centres please contact us on volunteer-stapeley@rspca.org.uk.  You can also see the website http://bit.ly/WYhfkb

Help us to help the animals.

Sponsors of Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre