Fox SAVED after being hit by a train
🦊 TRAIN FOX FULL STORY 🦊
Well... we promised you an update and boy do we have one! Here is the full story of the fox who was rescued by Greenwich Wildlife Network after being hit by a train. Be warned, some parts are a little graphic...
❗ To answer a few questions that some people have had: ❗
- Research has found that foxes can survive perfectly well without a full tail. There is a limit on what can be removed, but this chap was lucky!
- Yes, the fur will grow back around the stump, this process just takes time and is not worth the stress of keeping him captive.
- For any adult territorial animal, it's vital to release them back into their home territory. They know where to find food, shelter and more and will likely be attacked and injured if moved elsewhere. It may not seem ideal to us, but it's the best for the fox 🦊
Baby fox gets his HEAD stuck in a sink!
We see some pretty odd things in the world of wildlife rescue, but it's always foxes that seem to find themselves in the strangest positions!
Lead vet, Tom, was recently called out to help this poor fox cub after he'd somehow managed to get his HEAD stuck in the plughole of a sink. With breaking the sink being far too risky to try, the only option was to gently try and pull the little guy back the way he went in...
Watch the full video to see what happened to the little fox! 🦊
If you wanted to support our work, please consider donating at https://southessexwildlife.org/donate
Wildlife Rescue - A sneak peak at our new TV series!
Wow! The response to the announcement of 'Wildlife Rescue' - a new four-part TV series on our work here at SEWH was absolutely amazing!
We're all really excited for launch night this Thursday, but in the meantime we have something very special for you... Here is a sneak peak of what's coming! 😁
We can't wait to see you all there, and please share far and wide!
#C4WildlifeRescue
Rescued baby seals experience water for the first time!
Ever seen an excited seal pup before? 🦭
Let's be honest... grey seals aren't really meant for land. These beautiful creatures are perfectly adapted to water and can't hide their excitement when they find it for the first time!
These pups all arrived as orphans and, up until now, have only experienced shallow water as they grew up. When their turn came to enter our deeper pool for the first time, it's safe to say that they loved it! ❤️ 🦭 ❤️
Hungry young mouse gets a meal!
Someone's hungry... but only wants to eat when no-one is watching! 🫣
This fox recovered from a HORRIFIC injury!
We have something very special for you this #FreedomFriday...
We're beyond delighted to say that, after several weeks of hard work, our head-injury fox is now back home!
Arriving with a horrific head injury, Tom has worked his magic and now you'd never know just how injured this boy once was. This was only possible thanks to the support and generosity shown by you all for donating towards his care. As a charity, we rely 100% on public donations and your support helps us give animals like this fox another chance. THANK YOU!
The last supper... The 10 badger cubs that we have been caring for since they started arriving as orphans in April are being moved to their release site tomorrow. Expertly constructed by Essex Badger Protection Group this years artificial sett is ready to recieve its new occupants who will still be support fed for 16 weeks after release.
The badger group and ourselves are extremely grateful to the land owner for hosting this years sett and for the help provided by his builders .
We have a license to microchip the cubs which is done on arrival, so if they are ever rescued we will know their history.
Tonight the badgers got some extra special treats with their dinner.
Happy endings like this would not be possible without folk supporting our charity , well done everyone and thank you for your donations.
🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡🦡 😍
Badgers are known to have a varied diet and will often eat fruit. We had a huge donation of delicious strawberries so though ours would like to try some for dessert. Filming their reaction wasn't that easy though...😋
Its nearly 3 am and we need to try and get some sleep ( please lord no emergency calls !) We have lots to update all our lovely followers with but just had to share this little patient with you that arrived this evening. It had been found on a footpath and bought to us by 3 lovely young lads, can you guess what it is ? not something we get at this young age very often....baby buzzard 😍
To say the hospital has been very busy lately is a huge understatement !
one of our more enjoyable jobs is to improve accomodation for our patients.
This week 4 of our badger cubs were moved into a larger enclosure from a stable . They were soon joined by 2 more and we have another 2 currently on treatment. Essex Badger Protection Group have been working hard on this years sett build for them to eventually be rehabilitated into. We were happy to help Folly Wildlife Rescue by having 3 of their cubs particularly as they have helped us with deer fawns previously.
Tonights misson for our vet Tom was to rescue a fox cub from a drain system. The poor cub had been trapped for at least 3 days and attempts by the fire brigade and the RSPCA had failed. The cub was also at risk of drowning but it repeatedly vanished up a pipe when any of the adjacent road drains were approached by people or cars. Tom opened up the drain grates, put some food out ( supplied by our caller ; thank you!), and had a frustrating few hours of watching and waiting for the cub to emerge so that the grates could be closed and the road made safe again. The cub is a bit stiff as he scampers away which is to be expected but seems to know where he is going, hopefully back home to his mummy !
Tom is now back at the hospital catching up on surgeries . Looks like its going to be another long night ...🥱
Cat predation is the number one reason casualties arrive at the hospital. This week due to the warmer weather resulting in the reptiles sunbathing we have had several injured slowworms bought in. Slowworms are legless lizards and cats find them particularly attractive as they wriggle in an attempt to escape and are pretty chewy but at the same time totally defenceless . They often arrive covered in teeth marks with internal injuries ,this lizard had a damaged tail that needed removing. Had it been left injured it may have grown a second tail from the wound if it was unable to shed it which is a survival mechanism . Once the slowworm is anaesthetised, Tom the vet removes the damaged tail by snapping it off. Our in- house reptile specialist Steve explaines what is happening (although he didnt realise the proceedure was being recorded). The patient recovered from the proceedure and is currently on antibiotic and pain relief treatment.
We are having a bit of a foxtastic week at the hospital. In addition to numerous orphan cubs and injured adults, we currently have 3 lactating vixens . This vixen who is unable to use her back legs properly was bought to us by volunteers from Southend Animal Rescue, we sent them back with a cat trap and they managed to trap her cub the next day.
It is not known if any cubs are outstanding but efforts are being made to try and find others. The cause of the vixens disability is currently being investigated as there was nothing clear on her xrays and she is undergoing treatment.
What an adorable way to start the British hedgehog Preservation Society's
"hedgehog awareness week" with our first hoglet of the year. Weighing in at only 110g this feisty fella insisted he could feed himself , refused a syringe but tucked in eagerly to a dish of puppy food porridge.
Our hospital recieves around 1000 hedgehogs casualties each year all of whom have been adversely affected by human hazards. With population numbers in decline it is important to do all we can to support our national species and protect and improve their dwindling habitat. 🦔
Our little orphan badger cub now has a little sister to play with. Its always a worry when they are on their own as they are very stressed. The two girls immediately began getting to know each other and are now much more settled.
In our experience, vixens, female foxes, are the most devoted and attentive of all the animal parents that have offspring to care for. They have been known to shield their cubs with their own bodies when being attacked by huntsmen and their terriers.
when we recieve orphan cubs we always try and reunite them with mum. It rarely fails. Occasionally they will leave a runty one thats not thriving but if she is physically able to get her cubs that she has been seperated from, she will.
So far this season, in the last few weeks, we have had six vixens collect their cubs after giving advise to finders without a need for them to come in to us, today was the seventh.
First thing this morning a lovely young ecologist chap bought five cubs, a little over a week old, in from a development site. Sadly one cub hadn't survived the disturbance and we explained mum would be back to look for them. During the day we kept them warm and fed, unlike most mamals foxes are less bothered that their babies have a different scent on them although of course, we do wear gloves.
Early evening as it was getting dark we returned to the site with the cubs in a snuggly box and within a couple of hours the vixen had returned, took each cub, one at a time and ate the food we had left for her. We hope she has taken them far enough away that she doesn't get evicted again. The footage was taken in the dark from a distance but you can just about see the vixen retrieving her precious babies. Thank you to our gal Sarah for the stake out.
A few of our many current patients on world wildlife day...
