Some of Our Patients

Some of our patients – and how you can avoid creating another one!

We have had a number of very interesting patients over the years, the most memorable is an injured Osprey which had been caught in a net at a fish farm in New Galloway. The fish farmers cut the bird free hoping he would fly off, but he didn’t and so we were called in. The bird had injuries under his wing where the net had been caught and these had become infested by maggots. He had to be taken to the vet and anaesthetised to have the maggots removed. This was a big risk but we really had no choice, thankfully he came through the procedure without any complications. It took four attempts to release the bird, with the first one seeing manager Tricia Smith jumping into Stroan Loch to rescue the bird. Thankfully he flew off on our fourth attempt and the staff and volunteers hope that he made it to Africa and back safely.

Our most common patients are our hedgehogs. A lot of these are young hedgehogs who are not quite big enough for hibernation and so have to spend winter in SoSWH. These hedgehogs are found out during the day trying to find a little bit of extra food. The best thing for people to do in these circumstances is put a little cat or dog food out for them and hopefully this will help them fatten up in time for winter. If they do however appear a little wobbly when walking around and you are really concerned please do not hesitate to contact SoSWH for advice.

We do get some hedgehogs over the summer that have been disturbed in the nest by people doing their garden. It is advisable if possible that people leave these nests alone to allow mum to come back and care for her babies.

People should be very careful when gardening especially using a strimmer or a lawnmower. We have had a couple of hedgehogs with very bad injuries to their heads caused by a strimmer. Again if you are in any doubt please contact SoSWH.

As well as checking under bushes and hedges for hedgehogs before gardening please check under bonfires, these are ideal nests for hedgehogs so please take care.

Over the summer months we see quite a lot of young birds and receive a number of phone calls regarding young birds. If you have noticed a young bird fallen out the nest, try to put it back. If you can’t reach then put it as high as possible out of harms way. The young bird will still call for mum and she will still be feeding them.  Also look out for fledglings, these young birds will still be learning to fly and sitting on the ground looking like they can’t. If you do come across a fledgling, again you can put them on a wall or somewhere high out of harms way and hopefully they will soon learn. Mum will most likely still be feeding them. In these situations it is normally best to leave well alone and watch from a safe distance to make sure the bird isn’t in any danger.