SG Newsletter - Summer 2020

In this issue... Summer 2020 Oiled geese / Kestrel chicks returned to the wild / Virtual quiz NEWS STAPELEY Ollie's story - horrific collar injury, shot and not chipped!! GRANGE Photo by Freddy Jones Otter returned home PLUS - Vets corner 8 / Our Tweets 14 / Cattery News 16 / Fundraising news 20 Page 07 Page 9 As we come out of Covid 19 lockdown we are beginning to see things return to normal, at least the 'new normal'. It is likely that many of the covid measures put in place will continue for months to come, at least until we have a reliable vaccine to protect us all. There have however been lots of new ideas and protocols that may well continue even after Covid 19 is long gone, benefiting the centre and the Society in the long-term. Although the wildlife hospital and cattery have been closed to members of the public, we have continued to take animals in via our officers, who have continued to work throughout the lock-down period. Like all charities we have had staff on furlough and whilst a handful of volunteers remained to support the team, the majority stayed at home. It has been a careful balance between the number of animals in care and the number of staff and volunteers on site to maintain social distancing guidelines. Up until the end of June, the wildlife hospital admitted 2566 wild, domestic and exotic animals, which was only 250 animals down on last year's figure, so it has still been an extremely busy hospital. The cattery although quieter, like many animal centers across the country, has had enough cats in care that has kept the team busy. Despite staff on furlough and only a handful of volunteers, those remaining have really pulled together, which has helped get us through this difficult period. For many, these last few months have given us all the chance to spend more time with the immediate family, a time to reflect on how important our family, friends and indeed our neighbors are and hopefully had the chance to think about how we interact and impact the world around us. There are a number of stories within this newsletter that highlights how 'man' impacts on wildlife and domestics: oil spills, dog and cat attacks, fishing litter and the pointless shooting of domestic and wild animals. Lets hope that lockdown leads to a reduction in such incidents over the coming months and years and that we can all do our bit, however small, to help 'save the world' As with all charities the RSPCA and Stapeley Grange is facing a major hole in its income. The Society has predicted an approximate 13 million pound deficit this year due to Covid 19. Locally, Stapeley Grange is unable to fundraise as normal, via our open days, so we are looking at ways we can fill this funding gap through a virtual quiz (22nd August) and an end of year raffle. If you are interested in joining us at our quiz, which features celebrity rounds from Michaela Strachan, Robert Biddulph and Patrick Aryee, you can buy tickets online https://ticketlab.co.uk/event/id/5209 Page 4 It costs Stapeley Grange £50,000 to feed the 6,500 animals which are admitted every year. The food bill for seals alone costs £500 a week. Anyone who would like to support the vital work of Stapeley Grange can now donate online at Education News 2 WELCOME! Page 18 Student Placement 29 Oiled Geese Inside this Summer issue... Gull rehabilitation Just one thing... Page 12 3 Dogged Hog 3 Page 6 On the 20th June, the Stapeley team received a call from ACO Stephen Wickham who had been called out to a job which involved a number of oiled Canadian geese, in three locations along the Bridgewater Canal (Manchester). Apparently the geese were covered in diesel, source unknown but it was thought that the torrential rain had washed diesel from somewhere along the canal. Rescues took place in Ellesmere Street, in the Castlefield area, at Potato Wharf and also near Newton Street in Stretford. A boat team led by ACO Wickham managed to rescue 16 birds contaminated with oil on the first day and a further 12 adults and goslings on day 2, with help from the Greater Manchester Fire Service. If oil is not removed from waterbirds it reduces the natural waterproofing in their plumage, leaving them at risk of dying from hypothermia - so it was vital they were picked up and brought into the centre as quickly as possible, where our team could start the clean up. It can be fairly labor intensive: it takes two staff to wash one bird and it can take up to 30 minutes for each wash pending how severe the oiling is. Sometimes several deep cleans are needed to remove all the oil of a single bird but thankfully staff were able to remove the oil from all geese on the one wash. It's tough on the team whenever we admit large numbers of oiled birds, especially during the busy summer period and with our being shortstaffed due to covid 19. However, the birds were all washed, dried and outside within a few days. Thankfully, the oil quickly dissipated on the canal (within days) allowing us to seek permission from the Canal and River Trust. This allowed us to return 29 of the 30 birds that were rescued, under special license from Natural England. Sadly one was put to sleep with unrelated issues. Their return was filmed by BBC North West on 7th July. Anyone who sees pollution on water or land should call the Environment Agency 24-hour incident hotline on 0800 807060. Concerns for a wild animal that has come into contact with oil or other contaminants should be reported to the RSPCA’s emergency line on 0300 1234 999. A video of the birds getting cleaned can be downloaded from this link : https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/wopWvepj2g/Y2hlcnlsLmhhZ3VlQHJzcGNhLm9yZy51aw==  29 Oiled Geese returned " Kestrel chicks returned 5 Six kestrel chicks which were rescued after their mum was injured and unable to take care of them were admitted into the hospital and within days returned to wild foster nests. The chicks were rescued from Saughall Massie, on the Wirral, after a resident monitoring the nest box in the area noticed the mother was struggling to feed her six chicks. She could see the mother bird was jumping out of the nest box but was unable to fly so was struggling to feed her hungry chicks. She also reported that the male bird had left the area. Sadly, the female kestrel, on x-ray, was found to have three fractures in her wing and the decision was made to put her to sleep to end her suffering. The team quickly turned their attention to the six chicks which involved feeding the demanding young chicks four times a day. When we receive kestrel chicks of this age and we know there are no parents to rear them, our first thought is always whether we can return the chicks to the area and put them into wild kestrel nests, where there are chicks of a similar age. Timing has to be perfect and you have to have the support of a fully licensed BTO ringer but for these six lucky chicks everything seemed to fall into place. So, just five days after arriving at the hospital and once signed off by the team, the chicks were returned to the area and distributed into a number of wild nests, where they could be reared naturally by foster parents. Thanks to the support of a BTO ringer on the Wirral, these six chicks were BTO rung and returned to two nests close to where they were initially rescued. Our BTO contact is extremely passionate about the process of returning orphaned birds of prey back to the wild and says that "Wild birds should remain wild birds, orphaned and uninjured young should be returned to a suitable natural or box nest site if possible at the earliest opportunity to give the best chance to develop naturally" The six chicks were monitored over the coming weeks and the latest news was that they had all fledged and were seen flying around the nests. This was the perfect outcome for our orphans and our team. For more information about what to do if you find a baby bird struggling visit the RSPCA website here A video of the chicks can be downloaded from this link: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/zw0KdqDIyV/Y2hlcnlsLmhhZ3VlQHJzcGNhLm9yZy51aw=   Two of our orphaned kestrel chicks were put in with a group of four and three chicks with a group of three. 4 7 For more information about living with gulls: https://www.rspca.org.uk/documents/1494935/9042554/Living+with+-+gulls+(V1.0)+-+2015.pdf The release was captured on this heartwarming video food https://youtu.be/gIzRjCns8d0tage. Sainsbury's shoppers have been supporting our wild and domestic animals, through food donations, for four years now. Whether it be a tin of dog or cat food (pedigree dog or Whiskas cat food), cat litter, toys or fairy liquid (which is used on oiled animals) every donation has helped and truly makes a difference so please keep supporting. Currently, we not only have lots of young birds that seem to thrive on Sainsbury's own, meaty loaf dog food, we also have lots of hedgehogs (adults and babies) that do extremely well on Whiskas cat food (not gravy or fish based please) so please keep these donations coming. Otter rehabilitation Members of the public are the Societies eyes and ears on the ground and the reason so many animals are spotted injured, sick or orphaned and brought into rehabilitation centers across the UK. This adult otter was spotted in the Swansea Valley back back in May. RSPCA animal collection officer Ellie West was called out to the rescue and found the otter in urgent need of attention. The female otter was wobbly on her feet and very malnourished. Over the last couple of decades the number of otters arriving at Stapeley has steadily increased, a sign of how well they are doing in the wild maybe. Most otters arrive orphaned having been seperated from their mum by storms and flash floods but we do receive some adults that have been hit by cars or just sick. Sadly the outcome for adults is not usually a positive one, so it was really nice to have been able to see this one fully rehabilitated and returned to the wild. Whilst orphaned cubs can remain at Stapeley for up to 12 months, usually paired up and returned under a soft release protocol, adults can be returned as soon as they are ready and to where they were rescued, under a hard release protocol where they receive no support. This otter was cared for at Stapeley for seven weeks before finally being signed off for release. The team were obviously keen to get her back to her territory as quickly as possible but we had to be sure she was fighting fit and ready to return home. ACO Ellie West was lucky enough, on this occasion, to be able to help return this female otter back to the wild, which completed the journey for them both. Ellie reported back to Stapeley that "Helping wildlife is often an underappreciated part of the RSPCA's frontline work - but rescuing and rehabilitating animals like this otter is such an important element of what we do." 6 How often have we heard negative stores in the press about seagulls, their dive bombing members of the public for an ice cream or their chips or about how noisy and messy they can be!! To start with there is no such thing as a “seagull”, in fact there are eleven species of gulls found in the UK; the most common being the Herring and Lesser Black-backed gulls. They generally breed from May to July and most young fledge (and leave their parents) within just 6 weeks of hatching. During this period many orphaned gull chicks (several hundred) arrive at the centre. Some are just days old whilst others have almost fledged and should probably have been left in the wild and support fed. After the initial check on admission gulls are relatively easy to look after. They are kept in isolation and grow up in small groups (of a similar age), until they are ready to be moved to an outside pool, where they will remain until they are released back to the wild. They may not be the most popular of birds, in fact they are actually reported to be the most hated birds in the UK but if we look at it another way they are incredible parents, protecting their chicks at all costs and are surviving in a harsh world that 'Man' has taken over. They are in fact a hugely successful, opportunistic species that should actually be admired. Strangely, when we all look back on childhood memories it may well be the gull crashing down to steal our siblings / parents chips or ice cream that we remember most, so lets give our cheeky gulls a break! Gull rehabilitation 8 A dogged hog! Before Shot heron returned This heron was initially presented to us after being attacked by a goose. However, on initial assessment he appeared to have a shot pellet in one of his wings and also some heavy bruising and wounds to the area. He was x-rayed immediately and since he did not have any damage to the bones in the area, he was taken to surgery and the pellet removed. The rest of his wounds were cleaned and he was prescribed a course of anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. The heron was moved to isolation to give him time to fully recover where we could monitor his progress. One week after surgery he was moved to a large outside enclosure, where we could assess his ability to fly more easily. Thankfully he was flying well within a couple of days, so happily, 11 days post-admission he was signed off, allowing a RSPCA Officer to return him to the wild!" Dr Christina Kleespies (Vet Surgeon) Vet's corner Cygnets bound by litter Before Before 9 After This juvenile hedgehog could have met his end after a rather close encounter with a dog, but luckily, he was brought to Stapeley quick enough for us to be able to react. The dog had lacerated the hedgehog's skin leaving a large deficit that had become infected. After assessment under general anesthesia the vet team discovered that the infection had not spread too deep. The wound was cleaned up surgically, a drain placed and stitches applied in multiple layers. After a couple of weeks at the hospital, having been on pain relief and antibiotics, the hedgehog was signed off from vet care and later released. Hopefully he will be able to avoid such close encounters in the future. It is so important that dog owners take greater responsibility for their loved pets when they are around wildlife, as sadly we do receive quite a few admissions (particularly waterfowl) that have been attacked by dogs off leads. Dr Michaela Mateusiak (Vet Surgeon) The latest news  from the vet team at Stapeley Grange After After Two cygnets arrived at Stapeley after they were found with their beaks tangled in fishing line, attaching themselves to each other. The line was removed, leaving both with deep ligature wounds around the base of their lower beaks. The smaller cygnet's injuries appeared worse than the other, and could not completely close its beak due to the swelling. On general assessment, no other issues were seen, and luckily there were no wounds inside their mouths which could have effected how they fed. Their beaks were cleaned and both were started on treatment and monitored closely over the next week. One cygnet drastically improved, however the smaller cygnet did not improve as quickly as the vets would have hoped. This bird was placed under general anaesthetic so the wound could be fully assessed and cleaned. Luckily, when under anaesthetic, the vets were able to clean the wound much more effectively. Both swans are now on an outdoor pool where they will stay until they are old enough for release. Dr Sophie Common (Vet Surgeon)   VET'S 10 Every year we receive hundreds of birds that have been attacked by cats. Unfortunately, cats are a huge threat for our wildlife, and so it is important that cat owners take full responsibility and act accordingly when our pets have injured a wild bird or small mammal. What many people don’t know is that cats can carry a bacteria called Pasteurella, which is part of the normal oral flora in our feline friends, but can be lethal for birds. Even a small puncture wound could lead to a severe abscess, or even worse, septicemia and death if not treated with antibiotics. For this reason if a bird has been injured by a cat, it is important that they be seen by a vet immediately. This starling (pictured right), not only needed antibiotics, it required surgery too. It came in with a 1cm laceration on the pectoral area as well as several puncture wounds. Pectoral (chest) wounds are difficult to suture. This is because if there is too much skin tension at the surgical site, the bird's flight can be compromised. Additionally, birds have such thin skin that skin tears in surgical areas are a common complication. The goods news post surgery is the bird is doing really well. The stitches are still intact and he is managing to fly perfectly, so we are hoping to release him over the next couple of weeks. Now, let’s hope it doesn’t encounter any more cats!! Dr Teresa Vicens (Vet Surgeon) Catted starling in orphan room cage with other starling patients Starling patient following surgery https://ticketlab.co.uk/series/id/122 https://ticketlab.co.uk/series/id/122 Cats and Wildlife Every year Stapeley provides year long and summer placements for students from a variety of Universities and Colleges across the country. Alyssa Fernandes tells her story.... I am a graduate from the BSc (Hons) Applied Animal Science degree at Hartpury University, and last summer, I completed a three-month placement at Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre, where I learnt about many species admitted and their individual needs, depending on their age and condition. Seals, hedgehogs, and foxes had not been covered in my university lectures therefore, I enjoyed the application of these species to topics that I had covered, including health checking and behaviour. I was also grateful for the chance to live and work alongside other university students and vet interns in the flat, who showed me the ropes, and helped me feel at home. Before the placement, I had never health checked or handled a pigeon or hedgehog, hand fed corvids, which were wonderful experiences. The most rewarding part of the placement was that you could be working with any species, depending on the admissions, which made it very exciting, and getting to assist in the release of corvids, ducklings and swans was a highlight of my time at Stapeley. 13 As part of my placement I was permitted to complete a dissertation project. The project aimed to assess the well-being of swans, ducks, and geese during rehabilitation and to look at if and how we could improve the enclosure design for the subjects. I used a Modified Spread of Participation Index (MSPI) using a sample size of 18 swans, 150 ducks and 20 geese. After an observation period of four days, statistical analysis and MSPI values suggested that the swans had a limited enclosure usage, at least compared to ducks and geese. The territorial and flocking behaviour of swans could have explained the uneven enclosure usage, and recommendations to improve this included another feeding and bathing zone to help reduce competition. Loafing and preening were the most common swan behaviours, due to the popularity of the bathing zone. The frequencies of behaviours were affected by factors in the enclosure, such as human presence when replenishing feed, and the swan preference to carry out more active behaviours during the day. Student Placements @ Stapeley 12 Student Dissertation @HERCHYBOAL @RSPCA _ OFFICIAL 14 Stapeley's video collection Inspector Herchy Boal @CARARSPCA Regional Media Manager Rachel Butler TWEET tweet! Otter time - Santon and Storm at play and Orphaned otter cubs Fox cub feeding time: and Fox cub kiss chase Great crested grebe, Gulls galore and Some hungry jackdaws Some cheeky little polecats and Weasel orphan Common buzzards chicks and Cygnets in need of TLC Hoglet feeding time, Leveret release and not forgetting our Orphaned storm seals and Daffi, our orphaned otter cub Animal Welfare Officer Sonia Hulme @SONIA _ RSPCA @JOYNES85 It's not only our bird patients who tweet - we do too! We now have over 3,500 followers on our two Twitter accounts and it is growing all the time. Here is a selection of our tweets. Don't forget to follow us - @RSPCAStapeley or @StapeleyCats @RACHRSPCA The official RSPCA Twitter RSPCA inspectors, staff and centres across the country use Twitter too - here are some more accounts to follow 15 Animal Collection Officer  Cara Gibbon More RSPCA twittering Inspector Anthony Joynes Looking for loving forever homes Tommy Buddy CATTERY NEWS Millie 16 George Sorry for the graphic picture but it's important that cat owners are made aware of possible injuries from using the wrong types of collar. Cats are natural hunters and curious explorers and enjoy pushing through tight spots. Therefore, it's imperative that any collar is designed to free the cat should they become snagged and so they don't get their leg caught in the collar, as was the case with sweet Ollie. Ollie arrived at the Cattery on the 2nd July from Biddulph (Staffordshire) via one of our Officers who managed to trap him. He was reported to have been struggling for over three weeks. On arriving at Stapeley, Ollie was taken immediately to the exam room as it was obvious, just from the smell, that there was a serious problem. Ollie had caught his leg in the buckle collar which had now partly embedded into his neck. The wound was full of puss!! Ollie has since had surgery and has been recovering in the Cattery for the past couple of weeks. During surgery our vets took an x-ray and discovered he had also been shot!! Our vets removed the pellet, located in his muscle, from his right front side. Ollie is doing well and enjoying all the TLC from our vets, staff and volunteers. Sadly, poor Ollie was also not chipped so we have no way of contacting his owner, although he was put on Pets located. Ollie will be looking for his new loving forever home but not quite yet, so please keep an eye out on our facebook page for when he is available. If your cat wears a collar please take a look the following website, which helps to identify which collar is right for your cat and how to fit the collar correctly - https://icatcare.org/advice/collars/ Sunny 17 APPLY NOW! Ollie's story..... WELCOME TO OUR GARDEN! ! news Welcome to our garden designed by us for you. Please relax and have a seat, enjoy the pleasant view. Take in the sweet aroma of the many plants and herbs. Marvel at the varied songs sung by our native birds. Isn't nature wonderful, it helps provide our needs; bees by spreading pollen, the wind by spreading seeds. In the spring new shoots and bulbs will slowly stir grow. They've survived the winters ravishing; rain, frost, gales and snow. Many of the herbs you see have special healing powers; lots of everyday medicines come from garden flowers! Lavender helps us to relax, and is found in lots of homes. Comfrey has long been known as an aid to fractured bones. Parsley, Dill and Basil, Bay Leaf and Fennel too, of the garden herbs available, these are but a few. Also used in cooking Rosemary Sage and Thyme Marjoram, Chives, and Mint, favourites of all time! The summer months bring flowers, displayed so many ways. Tubs and borders, hanging baskets all brighten up our days. In our Therapy Garden growing here at RSPCA Stapeley Grange, some plants may look familiar, others a little strange. Let your senses awaken, be it through sights, or smells or sounds. Absorb the relaxing atmosphere as you stroll around the grounds. Our little pond in summer is home to frogs, and newts. Watch them swim and play among the water lily shoots. So come along now children, our gardens please explore. Beatles, bugs and big fat worms, many insects by the score. Can you spot our bug hotel? It’s made from recycled wood. It's very busy all summer long, so it must be very good! In amongst some fallen branches, surrounded by some logs, look quietly and carefully, you may just find some frogs. They meet up in the pond each day, and deposit their frog spawn; returning to their underground dens, until the tadpoles are born. Mums and dads, boys and girls, grans and grandads too, this beautiful world we live in, nature created just for you! Let’s do our duty and protect the seas, the sky, the lands. The future of mankind and animals, is firmly in our hands.  By Brian Corrigan 19 18 The education team are chomping at the bit to get back to Stapeley but it may be some time before we can welcome schools and other interested parties back in, given the current Covid 19 situation. Our first target however is to get our staff back in safely and then look to welcome back our children from our Virtual Schools programme in September, a programme funded by Cheshire East Council. We will work hard so we can back up and running as soon as possible for all our visitors as we believe that education is key when it comes to promoting wildlife conservation and animal welfare, particularly to our younger generations. We recently received two poems from a family member of one of our volunteer drivers, Sadie aged 8, and from one of our current volunteers, Brian Corrigan. The team thought it would be nice to share the two poems. Sadie's Hog Poem I am a hedgehog My house is surrounded by roots The spikes on my back are swords My eyes are as a black as night I am a hedgehog I have excellent ears to hear all the sounds Of the moon lit night sky But when I get scared I roll up in a small ball I am a hedgehog With the help of my snuffly snout Finding grubs as crunchy as crisps is easy With my snuffly snout no doubt I am a hedgehog My claws are like diggers I sleep all day and I am awake all night I am quite a sight for some animals at night Do you know how I feel? EDUCATION 21 A flipping big thank you to Flippyu.com Maintaining social distancing is obviously a priority for the team in both the hospital and cattery at the moment and face coverings are essential for when two members of staff have to work up close and personal with each other. For example, when two staff have to restrain a cat for bloods, carry a vari-kennel full of swans or geese for release or wrestle a seal pup for weighing. The team were therefore delighted to receive a box of face coverings from a friend of Stapeley Grange, who owns a company called Flippyu - https://flippyu.com The Stapeley cattery team (and our cats) would like to thank all those caring members of the public that have made donations via our amazon wish list - https://amzn.to/3jnCpaj The team have been blown away by how many generous people have supported the cattery during lockdown. Our cats will enjoy playing and using the donations and the team will certainly enjoy watching them enjoy themselves. We are always in need of donations of food, toys and bedding. Everyone's support and donations really do makes a difference. https://ticketlab.co.uk/event/id/5209 Virtual quiz 1st prize donation Another thank you to Sainsburys for their continued support of the centre, with this amazing hamper for the winners of the virtual quiz, which will be held on 22nd August. Under current Covid 19 restrictions, the team are having to find new ways of raising money, to help replace the loss of revenue from our not being able to run our Summer and Winter open days. So please join us on the 22nd for a fun couple of hours. Special guests Michaela Strachan, Rob Biddulph and Patrick Aryee have kindly agreed to support the evening. For more information and to book your team of six in for the evening - https://ticketlab.co.uk/event/id/5209 news 20 FUNDRAISING