Wildlife In Need

17/10/2026

We are so happy to see that this herring gull is finally ready for release! What a long journey it’s been for him. He came to us in a terrible state in April, having fallen into a vat of cooking oil. It was was a long (and smelly!) job for Marie to wash the oil from his feathers, making it quite a traumatic experience for the gull.

‘Oily’, as we nicknamed him, had to stay with us for six months while we waited for his feathers to become waterproofed again. This is a critical step before release to ensure he wouldn’t drown at sea. But look at him today! His feathers are looking fantastic, and we are so excited and relieved to see that he is finally fully waterproof and ready to return to the wild. We think he’s pretty happy about it too!

12/10/2026

A MASSIVE thank you to the group of teenagers who stepped up this evening to help a swan in distress at Sturminster Marshall!

Upon seeing the swan in trouble, they immediately made the call for help and patiently stayed right by its side until help arrived. They then assisted our volunteer Kathie to safely catch the swan, and Kathie transported it to the vet. It is now making its way to our main centre for further care.

Thank you so much to these brilliant young people for caring and taking action! ❤️

10/10/2026

This baby vole was found beside his dead mother, who had got herself squashed in a log bucket, his eyes were not open and we took him in!

Look at him now!

09/10/2026

This is definitely the tallest swan we’ve come across! He was brought to us by the RSPCA, having been found flat on the ground and unresponsive. Whilst that meant he could be picked up without a struggle, his condition was concerning. The swan went straight into the care of Sheila, who tended to him for nine days with her magic touch. The video shows Roger releasing him at Christchurch Quay, looking right as rain.

Next time you are down at the Quay, see if you can spot him yourself—just look for the longest neck! He’s quite impressive.

08/10/2026

We seem to be getting a lot of cygnet rescue calls at the moment - three in one day this week! But this one was an easy one for a change. A swan had crash-landed in the b**r garden of the Avon Causeway pub… which is next door to our rescue centre!

Benji, our gentle rescue from DAWG dogs 14 years ago, came along for the ride to collect him. We checked the cygnet, fed him and then released him all in the same day at Christchurch Quay.

Introducing a new cygnet to an established flock can sometimes be tricky, as adult swans can be very territorial. So it was fantastic to see that he immediately joined the other swans with no problems. Thank you Roger for always being there for the swans.

06/10/2026

05/10/2026

We received a call from Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue after a gull became trapped behind netting eight storeys high at the Cameo nightclub in Bournemouth. Dean and Marie headed straight to the scene and were able to take the exhausted bird (aka Steven!) off the crew after his ordeal.

We are angry that yet another bird has suffered as a result of lethal netting put up by property owners who don’t stop to consider the impact it has on our wildlife.

Steven is now safely in our care, and will soon be ready for release after a bit of R&R.

Massive thanks to the Dorset & Wiltshire fire crew for their swift and caring response to this incident.

03/10/2026

Superpet Ltd in Christchurch is so much more than a shop to us; they have been simply brilliant, championing Wildlife in Need over the years. Thank you to both staff and customers for your incredible generosity through donations - we truly couldn't do what we do without your ongoing kindness and support. Thank you for always being there for our rescue! 😊

03/10/2026

We cannot thank The Giving Garden enough for their incredible generosity!Not only have they donated a fantastic bundle of much-needed items for our rescue, but they also added a £100 donation on top. Thank you so much for the amazing work you do for charities ❤️