A tiny two-day-old badger has been nursed to health after being found in a haystack. Pella was found among the bales with her newborn siblings and mother by a farmer out walking his dogs.
The canines' barking alerted their owner to the animals but the frightened mother badger ran off. The farmer replaced the bales and left, so that the parent could return for her cubs.
But when he returned the following day, just one baby badger was left. The farmer rescued the cub and put it in the care of the SSPCA, who have put in a "colossal" amount of work raise her and keep her healthy.
SSPCA Centre assistant manager, April Dodds, said: "Pelly the badger came in to our care weighing just 72g! She was so cold without her family that she was almost unresponsive. Our animal rescue officer thought she was dead.
“The officer took her to the van to be warmed up. She slowly came back to life and the officer could hear her making little squeaks. She was transported to our National Wildlife Rescue Centre where she was hand reared by one of our wildlife assistants, Carys Young.
“The smallest badger we had previously ever cared for was 250g, so we couldn’t believe our eyes when tiny Pelly came to us at two days old! She was immediately started on milk feeds every two hours and through the night until her eyes opened.
"She continued these feeds until she was around eight weeks old and then she started weaning. This was a colossal commitment from our team but gave the most rewarding results!
“Pelly was then integrated with a new family group made up of other orphaned badgers at the centre to learn natural behaviours. After around eight months in our care, Pelly was successfully released at a site with supported feeding with the rest of her new family.
“We never know what animals are going to need our help each year, but we do know that we always need lots and lots of puppy milk for orphans like Pelly who require hourly or daily feeds.
“Hand feeding lasts for quite a long period of time to mimic when they would naturally wean from their mothers and give them the best chance of survival in the wild. We’d be so grateful for any donations that people can spare!”
The SSPCA shared Pelly's story to mark their 'orphan season' begininning. Their wildlife hospital cares for hundreds of orphans each year, who would not survive in the wild after being separated from their parents. This includes foxes, otters, deer, and badgers.
April continued: "“We are preparing for orphan season and the main thing we are in need of is puppy milk. We also need other supplies so that we can rehabilitate animals like Pelly the badger."
Food items can be donated via the centre’s Amazon wish list here: https://amzn.to/3ln57KT or sent from another online retailer that can deliver. Items can also be handed in daily between 1pm and 4pm to the reception at the Scottish SPCA National Wildlife Rescue Centre, Fishcross, Clackmannanshire, FK10 3AN.
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