SSPCA asks public to help contain injured wildlife
The charity is asking people to contain some birds and small animals that need rescue.
Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Scottish SPCA) has launched an appeal for the public to contain any sick or injured small mammals and birds that they find.
This comes as their 2022 statistics show that over 5,000 incidents regarding these animals went unresolved as the animal could not be located.
This makes up around 10 per cent of all calls about small animals and birds.
The charity now asks that members of the public contain some birds and small animals before they send out an animal rescue officer. This can be done by putting them in a container or placing a box over them.
Scottish SPCA chief superintendent Mike Flynn said: “The public really are our eyes and ears and they do a great job of alerting us to animals in need. However, when small birds or mammals are not contained they can often leave the area before our animal rescue officer can assist them.
“This means our officer needs to spend time searching for the animal, cutting back on the number of other jobs they can attend. There’s also a very clear animal welfare issue of the animal continuing to suffer if they do need help and are never found. Animals who are injured or sick are much more vulnerable to predators so containing the animal also protects them.”
As containing wild animals can be dangerous, Scottish SPCA are only asking the public to hold birds other than geese, swans, gannets, herons and birds of prey. They also ask that, with small animals, people only do this for bats, amphibians, hedgehogs and small rodents.
The organisation does not expect the public to try to contain animals that are already trapped or are inaccessible. There are also exceptions made for people with a disability or phobia which means they cannot contain the animal.
Mr Flynn said: “We know that everyone who calls our helpline is already doing their part to ensure we can successfully rescue animals in need. By taking this one extra step, members of the public will be making sure we can use the charity’s limited resources in the most effective way possible.”
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has updated its online reporting service for dead wild birds.
