RSPCA Cymru dealing with over 50 incidents a day during lockdown
"Animal cruelty has not stopped for the coronavirus. There are still countless animals across the country in urgent need of help".
RSPCA Cymru is dealing with more than 50 incidents a day during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Figures released by the animal welfare charity show that animal rescue teams dealt with 1,641 incidents in the month following the nation entering lockdown.
The data has been released as part of an emergency appeal, launched to keep rescue teams on the road during the pandemic and continuing to reach animals in need.
Across England and Wales, RSPCA rescuers dealt with a total of 21,137 animal welfare incidents between 23 March and 23 April.
Among these rescues included two baby wild mice saved from behind a shed in Cardiff, a swan that became entangled in fishing wire at Pen-Y-Fan, and a cat in that got stuck up a tree in Cwmbran.
The RSPCA's animal centres at Newport and Bryn-Y-Maen are currently closed to the public but continue to provide care for their 170 animals. The RSPCA's veterinary team at Merthyr are also working to help sick and injured animals, and deal with emergencies.
“Animal cruelty has not stopped for the coronavirus. There are still countless animals across the country in urgent need of help - and these new figures show, since the lockdown, our rescuers have been supporting animals in all parts of Wales,” said Martyn Hubbard, RSPCA Cymru superintendent.
“Our teams are still out and about rescuing animals in urgent need of care. Rescuers have dealt with almost 1,650 incidents in Wales alone in the last month - an average of more than 50 each and every day.”
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
