A STARTLING number of wildlife cruelty incidents in Salisbury has led to the co-owner of the Wiltshire Wildlife Hospital calling the acts “horrible.”
Recent reports from the RSPCA have signified the increase in animal cruelty across the county with 128 incidents of animal beatings in 2022 and specified hundreds of cat cruelty cases, many animals injured on purpose by their owners.
Wiltshire Wildlife Hospital owner, Marilyn Korkis said: “I don’t know how the RSPCA staff cope with the things they see. At the hospital, we help wildlife which has been injured ..often, by humans but usually, accidentally."
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Marilyn admitted that she had found recent acts of deliberate cruelty extremely upsetting.
She said: “A man was seen brushing a mother hedgehog with young out of his garden and onto the road. Luckily, other people came to their rescue and put them all into a bucket for safety, and we now have them.”
Hedgehog populations have declined since 2000 by 20 per cent to 75 per cent so the animals need all the help they can get.
Marilyn is always happy for people to ring up the Wildlife Hospital and ask for advice if they are unsure of what to do.
On one occasion a man did ring up reporting on a large snake being in his garden.
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Marilyn said: “He was really alarmed. I asked him to take a photo of it so I could identify it. I waited to hear from him, but it was days later when I received the photo. “
“Apparently, the snake had moved into someone else’s garden.”
The snake had been deliberately killed.
Marilyn added: “It would not have hurt anyone and was a large female grass snake. This really upset me. I said what they have done is kill a completely harmless grass snake. It's horrible."
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Grass snakes are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 and is the largest snake in Britain, most commonly associated with wetlands but can be found in grasslands, or in gardens. Colours vary but are usually greenish with a yellow and black collar.
Advice from the Wiltshire Wildlife Hospital is to always seek advice before acting and to call the hospital on 07850 778752
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