ADOPTTIMES
Ringo’sRelease-page4 TinyButTough-page6
SuspendedOvertheRiverpage10
Ifyou’rereadingthis,it’sbecauseyoucontinuetocaredeeplyabouttheanimalswhosestories fillthesepages-andbecauseyouchoosetosupportthem Thatsupportreallydoesmatter, andwe’reincrediblygratefultoyouforit.
Asthedaysshortenedandtheseasonsquietlyturned,weenteredaparticularlytestingtimefor ourwildlife Manyyounganimalswerefacingtheirveryfirstwinter,andit’softenharderthanit looks Routesthatfeltfamiliarinsummersuddenlybecameriskyastheeveningsdrewin,food wasmoredifficulttofind,andthecolderweatherdemandednewwaysofcoping.Wesawthis reflectedinthenumberofjuvenileanimalsarrivingwithus-notbecauseanythinghadgone wrong,butbecauselearninghowtosurvivetakestime.
Whiletheintensityoforphanseasonhadeased,ourworkcontinued,shapedbythequieterbut nolessimportantchallengesofthecoldermonths.Yourongoingsupportthroughadoptions, donations,orsimplystayingconnectedwithourwork,helpsensurewe’rethereforwildlife wheneverwe’reneeded.
ThankyouforbeingpartofourWildlifeAidcommunity,andforcaringsomuch,allyearround
Withwarmestwishes, Lou
INSIDEWAF
Asalocalresident,Ihavealwaysbeenawareof theexistenceoftheWildlifeAidFoundation.I knewthatIcouldtakeinjuredwildlifethere,and restassuredthatwhateverIbroughtwould receivethebesttreatment,whateverthe outcome
WhenIjoinedtheWildlifeAidFoundation,in 2022,asavolunteeronreception,itwas becauseIhavealwayslovedanimals, particularlyhedgehogs,andIrespectnature andaminaweofthewondersitshowsus.I startedoffjustdoingoneshiftaweekbutthat eventuallyturnedintothreeshiftsaweek,plus morewhentheneedarises,becauseI absolutelylovebeingthere
Ihave-andstilldo-learnsomuch,andIfindit incrediblyfascinatingtowatchthevetstreating wildlife-theyarealwayshappytoanswermy questions!Ihavealsohadthehonourofbeinga HomeCarer,meaningthatIhave
lookedafterorphanedrodentsandbirds.Thisinvolvesfeedingthemandlookingafterthem untiltheycanbereturnedtoWAForreleased Ofcourse,noteveryorphansurvives-thesame asnotallpatientsthatarriveatthehospitalsurvive-whichissad,but,forme,Itakecomfortin thefactthattheywerefoundandbroughttothehospitalanddidnotpassawayaloneorin pain.
Ihavealsohelpedoutoneveninganimalhusbandryshifts,whichinvolvesfeedingpatients Oneofmyfavouritepartsiscropfeedingpigeons,dovesandcorvids-loudandmessythough theyare!Ihavealsooccasionallydonefoxrescues,which,althoughsad,astheyarein desperateneedofhelp,isrewarding,too,becauseit’sonemoreanimalthathasbeenhelped.
Myfavouritepartoftheyearisorphanseason,it’sincrediblybusyandprettymanic,youdon’t knowattimesifyou’recomingorgoing,butit’sincredibletobepartofitand,eachyear,my identifyingofbabybirdsgetsalittlebitbetterbecause,believeme,itcanbeincrediblyhardto differentiatebetweenasparroworarobin,forexample,whentheyarehatchlings!
Iamsoproudandhappytobepartofsuchawonderfulorganisationthatisnotonlylikea schoolonwildlife,buthasalsogivenmetheopportunitytogettoknowsomanypeople,some ofwhomhavebecometruefriends,andIwillcontinuetobepartofitforaverylongtimeto come.
Interestedinvolunteering? ScantheQRcodetoseeallthe roleswehaveavailble.
FoxNews Ringo’sRelease
Thislittlefoxwasbroughttousonthe15 ofDecember, weak,dehydrated,dazedandsufferingfromsevere diarrhoea.Uponinspection,ourvet,Raul,discoveredthat RingohadcontractedGiardia,amicroscopicparasitethat infectstheintestines
Ringowassyringe-fedandplacedinanincubator.His bloodsrevealedhehadsevereanaemia,therefore, treatmentwasgivenforthis
Thevetscontinuedtoforce-feedRingo,andkepthimin theincubatoruntilhegatheredstrengthandbegan eatingonhisown.Hewasthenmovedintoapenand monitoredcloselyfromthere.
Duringrehabilitation,ourvetsbecameconcernedwith Ringo’sbehaviour,ashedidn’tseemafraidofpeople.This isanegativesign,as,atWildlifeAid,wemustensureall animalsunderourcareremainwild.Thisisforthe animals’ownprotection However,eventually,Ringo begantoexhibitnaturalfoxbehaviour-hewouldrun awaywheneveranyoneenteredhispen.
WithpeaceofmindthatRingodidnothaveany neurologicalissues,hewasgiventheall-clearforrelease
Recoverywasalong,slowprocess,however,after6weeks incare,Ringowasfinallyreleasedonthe27 ofJanuary! Wewishhimallthebestonhisjourneybackintothewild.
ToseemoreonRingo’sreleasebackintothewild,youcan joinourPatreon!Justscanbelow:
ATrueSurvivor
Takingthreeweekstocatch,thisisnoordinary fox!Thisfoxwasnamed‘Scar’byourvet,Judith, becauseofthelargescaracrosshisface.
However,Scarwasnotbroughttothehospitalfor thisreason Hewasactuallybroughtinduetoa puncturewoundonhisleftleg,whichhad becomeinfectedandswollen.
Uponcloserexamination,JudithfoundthatScar wasalsomissingatoe,hadanold,healed fractureinthesameinjuredleg,andwasmissing apieceofhislip,alongwithalongscar stretchingacrosshisface.Henceforth,hewas knownasa‘truesurvivor’.
JudithgottoworkclippingandcleaningthewoundandthenScarwasplacedinapensothe healingprocesscouldbemonitored Scarwasdescribedas‘veryfeisty’whenthevetstriedto assesshiswound
Despitehisattitude,hislegwoundhealedupverywellandScarwasreleasedonthe9 of December2025!Wewishhimallthebestonhisreturntothewild,andhopehecontinuesto thrive.
HedgehogHeadlines
TinyButTough
Onthe2ndofNovember2025,thehospitalsaw threetinyhogletsbroughtintoourcare Theyhad arrivedasaresultoftheirnestbeingdisturbed. Sadly,oneofthethreehogletssustainedasevere backinjuryfromagardenfork,whichcaused irreparable,unsurvivabledamage
Theremainingtwohogletsappearedtobewell–eachweighing-inatabout110g,whichwasvery smallforthetimeofyear!Theyweretransferredto adedicatedhomecarer,wheretheycouldreceive continuouscaretocarryondeveloping
On24thNovember2025,thetwohoglets,now threetimestheiroriginalsize,werereturnedtoour hospitalfromhomecare,afterdevelopingsevere diarrhoeaandweightloss Thisraisedsignificant concernforourveterinaryteam,andtheywere immediatelyplacedunderurgentcareforfurther treatment.Bloodandgreenslimewerefoundin thehoglets’poo,suggestingsalmonellabacterial infection
Sincebeinginurgentcare,bothhogletsbegan puttingonweight,eatingfineandtheirfaeces lookedalotbetter!
Afteracoupleofweekshadpassed,bothhoglets werebigenoughtobeplacedintheirown hutches.Hedgehogsareplacedintohutches shortlybeforerelease.
Finally,onthe12 January2026,thepairwere released! th
Wewishthemallthebestandhopetheycan bringtheirbraveryintothewild
HealingTakesTime
Whenthishedgehogfirstarrived,itwasclearhehadbeen strugglingforsometime Hisfacewasbadlyswollen, especiallyontherightside,withanunderlyingabscess Beneathhisjaw,thelymphnodewasenlarged,andseveral teethwererotten,makingitpainfulforhimtoopenhismouth, fully.Hiseyeswereswollen,too,andtheconjunctivainflamed, thoughhestillrespondedtohissurroundingsanddidn’t behaveasifhewasblind Tickscoveredhisbody,andhislow bodyconditiontoldastoryofhardship
Treatmentbegan,immediately.Hewasgivenantibioticsand painrelief,treatedforparasites,supportedwithfluids,andthe worstofthedentaldamagewasaddressedwiththeremoval ofarottentooth Despiteeverything,thatveryeveninghe surprisedeveryonebyeatingbiscuits,inhiscage!
Overthenextfewdays,hecontinuedtoeatwell.By November,hehadalreadygainedweight,thoughtheabscess remainedlarge Itwasclearthiswouldn’tbeaquickfix;he wouldneedpatience,ongoingantibiotics,andcareful monitoring.
Hiseyesightwasn’tperfect,hislefteyeseemedtohavevery littlevision,buthenavigatedhisspaceconfidently,moving withoutconfusion.
Afewdayslater,whiletheswellinghadimproved,something newwasnoticed:instabilityinhisjaw.X-raysrevealedajaw fracture,alreadyshowingsignsofhealingwithcallus formation
BytheendofNovember,hewasthriving.Theabscesshad healedcompletely,hisjawfracturewasstable,andheate eagerlyandwithoutdifficulty Hisvisionwasn’tperfect,buthe avoidedobstacleswell Withhisstrengthrestored,hewas movedintoahutchtobeginacclimatingforlifeoutdoors.
Thankfully,aftereverything,hewasreleasedonthe6 of December th
Badger
Bulletin BadgerClanUpdate
Rememberthebadgerclanthatwasheadedtoitssoftreleasesite?
Onthe14 ofOctober,theclanreceivedatraditionalWAFtreatofearthwormstowishthem goodbye,beforetheyweresenttotheirsoftreleasesite.Sincethen,theyhavebeeneating well,playing,andenjoyingbeingclosertonature
th YoucanwatchhowthebadgershavebeenenjoyingtheirsoftreleasebyscanningtheQR code,below.
Didyouknow?
Albie
Duringwinter,badgersgointotorpor-astateofreducedactivityandmetabolism(similarto hibernation).Duringtorpor,theysleepintheirsetts,conservingenergybyloweringtheirheart rateandemergingoccasionallytoeat.Thankfully,duringwinter,weseefewerbadgers,dueto torpor therefore havelesscasualtiestoreport!
SoftReleaseSites
Whatisasoftreleasesite?
Animalsacclimatiseinasecureenclosureoraviary,onyourland,beforebeingreleasedtothe wild.Thesoftreleasesiteownerwillprovidefoodandwaterduringandafterrelease,until independence
RELEASESITESNEEDED!
Weareinneedofreleasesitesforlaterintheyear,toensurethebadgerswerescueareableto acclimatise,safely.
Whatisneeded?
Site:Provideaquiet,safe,disturbance-freearea
Dogs:Keepdogsawayoronaleadandwellclearatalltimes
FreezerSpace:Providefreezerspaceforstoringfrozenchicksandquail
Contact:Onlyattendforfeedingandcleaning-nohandlingorinteraction
FoodandWater:Providedailyfoodandcleanwater,followinghospitalguidance ObserveandReport:Monitorfromadistance;reportanyconcerns,immediately
Ifthisissomethingyouareinterestedin,pleasecontactus!
Interestedinhelpingwithsoftrelease?
ScantheQRcode,below,forwaystogetin touch
Owl Tweets
SuspendedOverthe River
Wewerecalledtorescueabarnowlthatwas suspendedovertheRiverWey,tangledinfishing line.Thankfully,SurreyFireandRescuewereableto cometoouraidwithaboat!
BackatWildlifeAid,ourvet,Raul,carefullyfreedthe owlfromthetangledfishingwire Oncloser inspection,wediscoveredthewirewastightly wrappedaroundhisfeathersbut,thankfully,had notcutdeepintothewing Thisgaveushopethattherewouldbenolastingdamage,justsome swellingthatneededmonitoring.
Duetothebird’sexcellentrecovery,ourvet,Judith,decidedhewasreadytobereleased.Onthe 16 ofNovember2025,thisbarnowlwasreleasedbackintothewild,inafamiliarlocation th Thisisawonderfulsuccessstory,showcasinganincrediblerecovery,butitalsoservesasa powerfulreminderoftheharmlittercancausetoourwildlife.Please,alwaysdisposeofyourlitter andfishingwireresponsibly,tohelpprotectthesebeautifulcreatures.
RoadsidetoRelease
Thistawnyowlwas,unfortunately,anothervictimofaroadtrafficaccident.Weseealotof these,here,atWildlifeAid,and,whilstweunderstandaccidentscanhappen,weliketoremind peopleto,please,slowdownwhendriving
Luckilyforthistawnyowl,hearrivedatourhospitalwithnoobviouswoundsandnofractures. Hewas,however,veryquietanddidnotwanttoeatalot.
Ourvetsprovidedhimwithsupplementsmadeespeciallyforanimalsthatarehavingtrouble eatingordigestingafteranillness,andhewasmonitoredcloselyonhisfoodconsumptionand generalbehaviour.
Afterbeingmonitoredforafewdays,ourvetsnoticedhewaslookingalittlebrighter,sohewas movedtoanaviary,wherehisflyingabilitiescouldbeassessed
Afterawhile,hebeganeatingallhisfoodovernightandflyingaroundtheaviary.Itwasthen decidedhewasreadyforrelease.
Onthe31 October,thislovelytawnyowlwasreleasedbackintothewild,wherehebelongs We hopehecancontinuetoflywithnomorecollisions!
Deer
Daily
Thisfemaleroedeerwasreportedtousafterbeingdiscoveredtrappedinafencebetweenthe M25,acanal,andabusyrailwayline-afrighteninganddangeroussituationforanywildanimal
Ouramazingrescueandveterinaryteamresponded,immediately,headingstraighttothescene tofreethedistresseddeerandassesshercondition.
Onarrival,theyweremetbyaconcernedmemberofthepublic,whowasaccompaniedbyhis twodogs Tohelpminimiseanyadditionalstress,we,kindly,askedforthedogstobemoved awayfromthearea.
It’simportanttorememberthatfrightenedanimalsexperiencethesamefight,flightorfreeze responsethatwedo Whenananimalappearsstill,itdoesn’talwaysmeantheyarecalm;they maysimplybefrozeninfear Ifyoueverencounterananimalindistress,please,bemindfulofthis andhelpreducenoiseandactivityaroundthem,wherepossible.
Ourwonderfulvet,Judith,gentlycoveredthedeer’seyestohelpkeephercalm,before administeringalightsedative,allowingtheteamtosafelyandcarefullyfreeherfromthefence
Oncereleased,shewasgivenathoroughexamination.Thankfully,shehadsustainedno fractures,onlyminorrashestoherhips,whereshehadbeentrapped.
WhenJudithwassatisfiedthatshewasstableandready,thesedationwasreversed Theteam monitoredherclosely,untilshewasbackonherfeetandabletoreturnsafelytoher surroundings.
Thankstotheswiftactionsofourdedicatedteam,andthecompassionofthememberofthe publicwhoalertedus,thisbeautifulroedeerwasgivenasecondchance.Wewishherasafeand peacefulfuture,backinthewild
PigeonPost
ThePerfectPair
Thesetwowerebroughtto usonseparateoccasions, butforthesamereason, andonlyonedayapart!
Unfortunately,thesetwo woodpigeonswereboth foundfallenfromtheir nestand,astheywere onlyyoungnestlings,they wouldneedourcare,if theyweretosurvive.
Earlyon,illnessandpoor featherdevelopment causedsetbacks,and theirfuturewasuncertain.
Withveterinarysupport,however,theirdamagedfeatherswerecarefullyremovedtogivenew onesthebestchancetogrow.
Progresshasbeenslow,butit’shappening!Theirweighthasincreased,they’refeedingwell,and newfeathersarecomingthrough justnotenough,yet,forflight.
Fornow,theyremainsafelyinanaviary,stillneedingtimebeforetheycantaketotheskies A gentlereminderthatrescueisn’talwaysquick,butpatiencecanmakeallthedifference!
FancyFootwear
Thispigeonwasbroughttoourcareaftersufferingwoundstohisleftflankandknee.Therewere noobviousfracturestohisleg,however,iswassuspectedhewasn’tusingit,duetothepainhe sufferedelsewhere.
Ourvet,Judith,gottowork,stitchinguphiswound Hewasmovedtoanincubatortobe monitored.
Afterafewdays,hiswoundsappearedtobehealingwell,however,hewasstillnotusinghisfoot, so,Judithdecidedtocreateashoetohelphim
Twoshoeslater,and success!Theshoewastheperfectfitandourpigeonappearedmore mobile.
Afteracoupleofdays,ourvetsnoticedtheshoehadfallenoff.However,thisdidn’tmatter,ashe appearedtobeusinghisfoot,perfectly!
Hewasthenmovedtoanaviary,wherehecouldpracticeflying,beforebeingreleased. Onthe24 ofDecember,thispigeonwasfinallyreadyforrelease,justintimeforChristmas!
Bat Broadcast
GroundedtoGliding
Thisbrownlong-earedbatwasfoundgrounded,near Leatherhead.
Hesufferedfromnoexternalwoundsorfractures,butwas underweight.
Withnowoundstofix,thisbatwastransferredtoourfriends atSurreyBatRescue,tobemonitoredandcared,forbefore hisreleasebackintothewild!
Didyouknow?
Batshibernateduringthe coldermonths,survivingon fattheyhavestored,rather thantryingtoforagefor food
Becauseofthis,wedonot seemanybatpatients duringthewinter,whichis apositive!
AdoptionImpact
AtWildlifeAid,weworkwithnearly200Britishwildlifespecies,andyoursupportplaysan importantpartinrescuingandrehabilitatingthemall.Let'sdiveintothewildworldofsomeother quirkycritterswegettohelp
Thiswasordinarycase,here,atWildlifeAid Colinwas broughtintothehospitalonthe5 ofNovember2025,as hewasunabletofly.Uponfurtherinspection,ourvets discoveredthathehadaseveresinusinfection.
Thisconditionhadcausedsignificantdiscomfortand madebreathingdifficultforhim,which,inturn,affectedhis overallstrengthandabilitytofly.Weknowhowpainfulthis canbe;therefore,thevetscametohisaid,straightaway, byperformingsurgerytodrainthepusandreduce inflammation Hissinuseswerethenflushedandclosed, slightly ThevetscontinuedtoflushColin’ssinuses,untilhe wasflyingandreadyforrelease!
MeetMrsPocket!
Ifyoufollowusonsocialmedia,youmaybefamiliarwith MrsPocket,ourhazeldormouse.
Shegothernameasshewasfoundbuildinganestinside agardener’sjacketpocket!
Beingextremelyunderweight,shewasbroughtintoour careforfoodandtohibernate,overthewintermonths
Currently,shecontinuestobefastasleepinhibernation butdoingverywell. ,
Thisyellow-neckedfieldmousewasbroughtintothe hospitalonthe30thofNovember2025,duetoacat attack Hesufferedalargewoundonhisback,mainly affectingtherightflankandrightbackleg.Althoughhis backlegwasdamaged,hewasstillmobileonallfour legs,however,wasverystressedandalert.
Ourvet,Judith,gottoworkperformingsurgerytostitch upthewound.Itwasasuccessfulsurgery,andour yellow-neckedfieldmouselookedalotbetter.Aftera while,hiswoundshealedandhewasreleasedbackinto thewild,wherehebelongs.
Colin the Crow
First yellow-necked field mouse of the year!
Mrs Pocket
