Nearly 350 calls to RSPCA about litter-affected animals in Wiltshire and Hampshire in two years
Charity encouraging people to join the Great British Spring Clean
The RSPCA say they have had 334 calls about animals affected by litter in Wiltshire and Hampshire since 2020.
This includes creatures being injured, trapped, choked or even killed by rubbish discarded on the floor.
Nationally they had around 7,500 reports in the same time, an average of ten calls a day.
Including a little fox cub whose head became jammed in a plastic bottle, a baby swan caught in discarded angling litter and a mother hedgehog and her baby hoglets almost thrown into a bin lorry with the discarded paddling pool they were nesting in.
The charity now are urging people to take part in Keep Britain Tidy’s Big Bag Challenge for this year’s Great British Spring Clean.
RSPCA Scientific Officer Evie Button said:
“Our staff deal with thousands of incidents every year where animals have been impacted by litter - and they’re the ones that we know of. I’m sure for every animal we’re able to help there are many that go unseen, unreported and may even lose their lives.
“Litter is one of the biggest hazards our wildlife faces today. It's a problem on all of our doorsteps - from city centres to the countryside and beaches - so all of us can do something to help. Spring is an ideal time to go on a litter-pick because it's before the breeding season when young animals such as fox cubs start getting into trouble, and litter will be more visible in hedges before the vegetation really starts growing. That’s why we’re calling on the public to get involved in the Great British Spring Clean to help remove litter that may endanger animals.
“Animals who get their heads or necks stuck in litter can suffer severe injuries as they struggle to break free and can even suffocate, while others will slowly grow weaker and weaker as they try to hunt or find food or water.
“Others will get fishing line or netting cutting deep into their skin, affecting circulation and with wounds becoming seriously infected. These hazards can very quickly become a matter of life or death for these animals and action is urgently needed to tackle this problem head-on. It’s up to every one of us to do our bit in the war against litter.”