ANIMAL RESCUES

BADGERS RESCUED

In June we successfully rescued and released a group of badgers back into the wild after they fell 16ft into an empty sewage tank.

We successfully rescued a cat that was found at an offshore oil rig in a shipping container that came from Peterhead.

Animal rescue officer, Dawn Vale-Juma, said, “The tank was inaccessible so we called the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service for assistance. Thankfully, the crew from Lanark fire station arrived quickly and were happy to help.”

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Station Commander Philip McDonald said, “As a humanitarian organisation, we will always assist the Scottish SPCA when required to help an animal in distress.

“Our response can prevent members of the public putting themselves in danger by attempting to do their own rescue. Firefighters are trained for these types of incidents and we are pleased that we were able to help out in this instance.”

The crew helped by lowering a ladder into the tank so an inspector could climb down and transfer the badgers safely into carriers.

Animal rescue officer, Dawn Vale-Juma continued, “One of the male badgers had managed to find shade in a tunnel so was very lively. He was checked over and released on to a badger trail that ran parallel to the facility.

“Unfortunately, the other two badgers were exposed to the sun and were very lethargic and dehydrated. They were caught and taken to our National Wildlife Rescue Centre at Fishcross to receive the care they needed.

“A few days later, after plenty of TLC, they were released back into the wild near to where they were found.”

ONE EYED-JOE

We were alerted to the cat on 21 April, and collected him on 22 April after he continued his adventure with a personal helicopter ride back to shore. The cat had been living as a stray and frequenting the area around Peterhead Prison for the last five years, but when we scanned him for a microchip it turned out he had an owner and had actually been missing from home during that time.

Animal rescue officer, Aimee Findlay, said “We were alerted to an incident of a cat being found in a shipping container offshore. “We have no idea how the cat ended up there, but attended the heliport to collect him.

“The cat had been nicknamed ‘OneEye Joe’ by the prison who had been feeding him for five years, but after checking him for a microchip it turns out his real name is Dexter and he had been missing for five years!

“We are so glad that he was well looked after for the time he was missing, but were even more delighted to be able to reunite him with his original owner thanks to his microchip being up to date.”