RSPCA issues Euro 2020 warning over animals trapped in nets
Crews have been to more than 134 entanglement calls across the East
As the East gets caught up in Euro 2020 fever - the RSPCA is warning of the dangers football nets and other netting can present to wildlife.
The animal rescue charity is bracing itself to deal with hundreds of entanglement incidents this summer as football-mad fans put up nets in their back gardens and sports fields.
Officers for the charity have already taken 1,139 calls about animals entangled in sports, garden and deterrence netting already this year in England and Wales, more than 2020’s 1,127 calls for the same period.
134 calls were recorded across Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire last year.
In Norfolk it was 79, 34 in Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire had 21.
In just three weeks in June this year, the animal charity had already received at least 30 netting entanglement reports, 20 of which related to foxes or fox cubs and the remainder being other species such as hedgehogs, deer, rabbits and birds such as gulls and crows.
RSPCA Scientific Officer Evie Button said:
“Football and other types of netting may be fun for humans but can be very dangerous for wild animals if they are left out overnight. The RSPCA receives hundreds of calls every year to rescue animals - often wildlife - who have become tangled in netting on sporting equipment or garden nets.
“Already this year, the number of call-outs to rescue animals caught up in nets are up on 2020 and in the past couple of months, we have had a spate of young foxes in particular becoming entangled.
"We suspect that people’s enthusiasm for Euro 2020 may have inspired increased numbers of amateur football nets to be put up in gardens and sports fields around the country and young, curious foxes are unaware of the dangers."
Evie went to add that getting tangled up in netting can be stressful for animals, particularly wild ones, and that those caught could be at risk of sever injury or even death if not found quickly enough.
“As wild animals frequently get trapped during the night, they may have been struggling for many hours by the time they are found in the morning and often need veterinary attention and sedation to cut them free.
“It's great that the likes of Jack Grealish and Gareth Bale are inspiring many of us to put on our shooting boots this summer - and enjoy the great outdoors and nature while having a kick-around.
"But we would urge those using sports netting to remove and store all nets after their game and put any discarded or old netting safely in a bin. Any garden fence netting should be replaced with solid metal mesh and use wood panels as fencing instead of netting.”
Of the 503 incidents reported to the RSPCA about wild mammals tangled in netting in 2020, 223 were related to foxes, 155 were hedgehogs and 104 deer.
To report concerns about an animal, call the RSPCA’s emergency line on 0300 1234 999 or visit the website.
Please do not try to free the animal from the netting yourself, as animals can have serious injuries if they become tightly entangled, so it’s best that they are examined to check if they need veterinary treatment before being released.
To help the RSPCA continue rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animals in desperate need of care please visit our website or call our donation line on 0300 123 8181.