& BROCK WEBSITE

Letters

 

14/4/09

 

 Dear Bob Speechley,

Just to thank you so much for getting back in touch with me to let me know how the badger was doing, I was so pleased to hear that she is fine and being well looked after, and that the future is looking good for her.

 

I was so disappointed in the response I received from the RSPCA when I called them on the side of the road to try to get some help as to what to do with the badger. All they could tell me was the obvious that it was a wild animal. I told them that I had seen a dead adult badger that morning on the same road so assumed it was the mother, When I asked was it able to feed and take care of it’s self at such an early age, I was told that they do come out and forage for food in daylight when they are young and just to leave it where it was!

 

Not happy to leave this very young badger right on the edge of a very busy road I then called my mother and asked her to call a local vet for their opinion on what I should do.

Also at the same time I had called my husband and he was looking up wild life web sites at home.

The vet’s response was to go back and check in an hour to see if it was still there only if I was to bring it in they may just have to put it to sleep.

Pretty useless really as if I went back in an hour it would have more than likely been squashed anyway.

 

I had just about given up, the badger had seemed to settle and both the rspca and the vets had told me to leave it where it was, so I headed back along the grass verge to my car as I was pulling away my husband called me and told me he had found your website and spoken to you and that you wanted us to get the badger so you could collect it and make sure it was taken care of.

I then went back to find the badger right by the curb again, my husband came with a box and we managed to get her in and back home until you came to collect her.

It seems so wrong that they were unable to give me the telephone number or even any information of the Cornwall badger rescue. Perhaps they can all be reminded of your telephone number so that if anyone else is unsure what to do when they come across a badger,{ and don’t have a computer to hand} the vets or the rspca can tell people to ring you for advice.

 

So thank you again for your help and letting us know how well she is doing. We have looked at the pictures on the web site she is so cute.

Keep up the good work,

                

                    Kind regards Linda and Malcolm Rowett.

 

 

 

 

This morning on the way to work we went the senic route, past Poldhu beach and through Cury. At Poldhu there was a dead badger and it was not nice to see.

Tonight we finished work at 8:30pm drove into Helston, picked up a Chinese takeaway and set off for home. Past Culdrose I thought dont go Cury way cos I didnt want to see that dead badger and I drove past the Cury Junction and went on the unscenic road back to Mullion. 100 yards past the juction we came across an horrific site. Not one but two badgers had just been hit by a car, the car I assume it was the one that hit them was just driving off. The two badgers were still moving, I had to keep going as there were cars behind me, after half a mile I had to pull into a layby, I was shaking and I admit I was crying. I got home as fast as I could and rang the RSPCA emergency numberI explained the situation and told them I was going back as it was a hazard. The lady gave me a number to ring of the local council as they would have to remove them. The lady said they would probably be flattened by now I rang the number she gave me and I explained to the fella the situation and said that they were a hazard , he said he would inform the Devon and Cornwall police and council highway to remove them I told him that I was going back to the scene to make sure that no one hit them and try to avoid them. No one had an accident I got back to the scene about 20 minutes after first seeing them and they were both dead.. I stopped just in front of them and put my hazards on; the poor things were ten feet from each other.
I rang the RSPCA (I had brought a mobile with me) and told them they were dead, Thanks for telling us she said...After about ten minutes a car pulled up and asked if I was okay (good of him) I told him what had happened, after a debate we pulled them to the side and put them into the hedge.I did not realise they were so heavy, the poor things were still warm.They were definitely dead, if we had not been sure I would not have touched them.I rang the local council who I had rang earlier to tell them we had moved the bodies and he said that the police were not going to send anyone but they would let the council know.
I drove to the junction and pulled in to turn around and as I did a police car went past I had to follow its it was heading toward Mullion. After a bit it pulled in and I stopped behind it the police officer got out and I asked him if they were looking for the badgers, yes they were they had come to move them. I explained everything to him and said sorry he had come out for nothing. He was very good about it and his opinion was the same as mine, they could have caused an accident being in the road.
Roger I am very upset, to see two beautiful creatures in a state and by the time I got back they were dead.The driver cannot be blamed, being confronted by a creature that just runs or freezes is a shock. I am 52; in the first 50 years of my life I’ve seen one live badger.
In the past 18 month I’ve lost count how many dead ones I’ve seen in Cornwall and now I’ve got them in my back garden.The time 11pm and I’ve just feed peanuts to two beauties.
LIFES NOT FAIR MAN
Sorry about thislong email it must be a world record, but I’ve had to tell someoneI am going to have a few cans of Lager and go to bed.....Sadly the sight of those two badger moving their heads as they lay in the road will be with me for a long time.
Bye
Roland