CHARITY
An Admirable Folly
FOR WILDLIFE
When wildlife is in need of urgent medical attention or rehabilitation there are a handful of charities across Sussex in a position to help; so we sent Peter d’Aguilar to meet one of them, at Folly Wildlife Rescue Trust near Eridge
D
o you ever wonder who looks after badgers hit by passing cars, or deer entangled by their antlers in fences and netting, orphaned hedgehogs and foxes, or birds stunned by window strikes? The answer in some parts of the county is Folly Wildlife Rescue Trust, a highly respected wildlife hospital situated in Broadwater Forest, between Eridge and Tunbridge Wells. Each year over 4,000 injured or distressed animals receive vital care and treatment from a dedicated team of volunteers and professional veterinary staff, before being returned to their natural habitats in the wild. Dave and Annette Risley, founders of the independent charity, first began looking after traumatised hedgehogs as a hobby, at their home in Eridge Green some thirty years ago. Dave had previously
been head-keeper of reptiles at London Zoo. Annette, who sadly passed away in January 2021, was working for Animal Aid, the animal rights organisation based in Tonbridge. Soon their back bedroom, garage and garden shed were packed to the gunwales with recuperating casualties. Pens and aviaries began to appear all over the garden, and by the new millennium, it was obvious they needed larger premises. After a major fundraising campaign, the group, by now a registered charity, purchased a redundant six-acre horticultural site and converted it into the Broadwater Forest Wildlife Hospital – which marks its tenth anniversary in April this year. As well as dealing with injured animals, Folly specialises in handrearing mammals such as hedgehogs, badgers, foxes, mice, rabbits and deer, as well as all species of nestling and fledgling birds. Hedgehogs in particular are now under threat of extinction; in the 1960s the UK population was
It costs us around £250,000 per annum to keep Folly Wildlife Rescue Trust going around 30 million, today it has slumped to just one million, according to Dave. The Trust run an education programme through local schools, community groups and clubs; both to promote better understanding of our valuable wildlife heritage and to draw attention to the man-made hazards faced by animals and birds, outlining
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