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A wildlife rescue charity has reported its busiest year on record so far. East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS) has admitted its 6,000th casualty of the year, the most in the charity’s history. The milestone was reached by a hedgehog which was found wobbly and thin during the day in Hollingbury, Brighton .
It has since been taken to East Sussex WRAS’s casualty centre for assessment. The charity said this year has been a “struggle” with every month other than January breaking its records for the number of casualties in its care. It also reported that 90 per cent of the casualties were either directly or indirectly related to human activity, as “the more we build and develop the area the more our wildlife will come into conflict with humans”.
The hedgehog was found wobbly and thin (Image: East Sussex WRAS) Trevor Weeks MBE, founder and operations director for East Sussex WRAS, said: “The demand on our service is huge and ever increasing and we are being stretched to our limit. “We are already trying to plan for next summer's busy season and trying to find ways we can cope with the workload, but we know it's going to be hard.” A spokesman for the charity added: “Over 45 rescues have closed down across the UK this year, so please help keep WRAS alive and well to ensure we are here for future generations or humans and wildlife, supporting our local biodiversity.
” More information, including how to donate, can be found at https://wildlifeambulance.org/. READ MORE: Over 4,000 casualties dealt with by Sussex rescue this year The charity in Whitesmith, near Lewes, was set up in 1996 to provide a front-line rescue service for wildlife.
It has enough facilities to handle up to 300 casualties at any one time and supports all kinds of animals including hedgehogs, deer, badgers, foxes and birds. At its hospital site, the centre has a treatment room, an orphan rearing area, an education room, pens and aviaries. The charity also has ambulances that carry a variety of equipment to help wildlife in danger.
This includes ladders, nets, stretchers, first aid kits, dog graspers and swan hooks..
