South Essex Wildlife Hospital

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South Essex Wildlife Hospital

Dedicated to putting “life” back into the “wild”
veterinary care and rehabilitation for wildlife.

13/09/2026

Yesterday, we were shown both the best and worst of humanity...

This young wood pigeon was minding his own business on Brentwood high street when he was set upon by a group of children. Multiple kicks later, the group left him quivering in a corner... but this brutal attack was witnessed by a young lady who immediately phoned us for help.

Not only did she stay with him until our ambulance arrived, but she and her friends formed a protective circle around the bird to make sure nothing else happened ❤

Quickly rushed back to the hospital, Alda set to work and we're doing all we can to get him back on his feet. It's still too early to be sure, but we will do everything we can to ensure that those who sought to hurt him wont win... 🥺

If the young lady who stayed with him is reading this, then THANK YOU. Your kindness helped to give this little one a chance 🥰

12/09/2026

When three organisations come together to save a life... 🥰

This barn owl has had a very busy few days... Originally found grounded by a member of the public, he was picked up and transferred Henlow Vets Royston for help. After taking an x-ray, their team found he had a nasty break to his wing 💔

Fixing such a break requires a veterinary surgeon skilled on something called orthopaedic surgery (something that's not too common), but getting him from Hertfordshire to Essex wasn't an easy task... Incredibly, volunteers from UK Wildlife Transporters offered to make the 60 mile journey to bring him into our care and, before long, he was on our operating table in the hands of vet, Alda! ❤

Once under our 'wing', Alda was able to carefully realign and secure the fracture using a series of specialised metal pins, leaving just an 'external fixator' visible on the wing (can you spot it in the first photo?). The poor boy is still not 100% out of the woods just yet, but the repair looks great and we're keeping everything crossed that, in three weeks time, that wing will be as good as new 🥰

11/09/2026

There's an epidemic in the UK... and it's our wildlife that's paying the price.

This is an x-ray of a fox, and that white blob you're seeing is a ball bearing fired from a catapult 💔

We're not going to show you the photos, but that ball bearing entered through her eye socket... Sadly, there was nothing that could be done and our heartbroken vet team had to gently send her to sleep...

We wish we could say that this was a unique case, but we are now seeing scenes like this on a daily basis. Horrifically, there is a trend (driven by social media) where young children (typically between 11 and 15) have taken to walking about trying to find animals to shoot at with catapults. There are even specific social media pages set up for people to 'show off' their kills...

Our industry is fighting back, but more and more cases like this are arriving at the gates of every wildlife rescue in the UK.

Just know that we're not going to stop fighting until each and every person responsible is caught and faces the full extent of the law. NOTHING deserves to die like this.

Help us fight back.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/777710

10/09/2026

These are the eyes of a fox who's about to get his second chance... ❤🦊❤

Three weeks. That's all that separates the two wounds in that second photo. Thanks to the hard work, and research skills of Alda, one of our vets, this little boy is nearing the time he can return home... 🥹

In what could well be a first in wildlife rehabilitation, Alda used a talapia skin graft (with the fish literally being bought from our local Morrisons) that she prepared herself to fix an injury that almost took over his entire upper leg. The recovery has been remarkable and we are genuinely thrilled at how quickly he has recovered.

Wild animals only have one thing - freedom - and we're very much looking forward to giving this back to this little boy as soon as we can 🥰

If you wanted to support our work, you can do so at https://www.southessexwildlife.org/donate ❤

09/09/2026

The tiniest of surgeries to save the smallest of lives! 🥰

This wound may only be 1cm long, but that's quite significant when you only weigh 25g! Sadly, this little wood mouse was caught by a cat, leaving a large tear injury to her upper leg. For most animals, this would be a simple suture job for our vet team, but it's a lot harder when you're working with something so small! 😱

Luckily, Alda, one of our vets, was able to carefully suture the wound closed and we all held our breath for a good outcome...

Fast forward to today and we have some incredible news. She not only recovered perfectly, but she's already back in the wild enjoying her second chance 🥰

We rely on public donations to make all of this possible. If you would like to support our work, you can do so at https://www.southessexwildlife.org/donate ❤

08/09/2026

Sometimes, all it needs is time... 🦡

We post a lot about complex surgeries or complex rehabilitation procedures on this page but, sometimes, things just need a little time to fix themselves!

This young badger was so collapsed on arrival that a member of the public was able to pick her up and carry her half a mile back to a car. As anyone who's ever tried to rescue a badger knows... that's not normal! 😳

One of our rescuers quickly rushed to the scene, but what met us in the boot of that car was a very different badger... Standing, moving normally and turning rather feisty, a little bit of rest seemed to have worked WONDERS! 🥹

We are still monitoring her just to make 100% sure she has no neurological trauma (especially as we think she may have been hit by something), but things are looking very positive for a quick release... 🤞🥰🦡

07/09/2026

From being found on her back to flying free once more... ❤

This beautiful bird is the largest bird of prey we regularly see here at SEWH - the red kite... and she has made a fantastic recovery!

Originally found lying on her back, we believe she may have flown into something or was brought down by corvids before being found by a member of the public. Initially VERY reluctant to try and fly, she was brought into our care where our vet team set to work... 🤞

Fast forward almost two weeks and she is now not only taking to the air, she is LOVING it! After showing us just how much better she was in her pen, she finally got to taste freedom earlier today and we couldn't be happier! 🥰

06/09/2026

Netting strikes again... 💔

Not a day goes past where we're not admitting a patient stuck in netting... This is now so common that entanglements are our second most common cause of admission here at the hospital 😢

This poor hedgehog was only trying to get across a garden, but he ended up badly tangled in football netting. In his bid to escape, the strands had wrapped themselves tightly around his little body, causing swelling and constriction injuries to his legs and neck 😭

Luckily, he was spotted in time and was quickly rushed into our care. Although vet, Alda, was able to quickly remove the netting, the swelling and oedema (fluid buildup under the skin) will need a lot longer to fix. We are now working to make sure this little one recovers, but please try and help us stop it happening again.

Lifting garden netting by just 30cm (1 foot) can make a HUGE difference to wildlife. It doesn't take much effort, but it really can save a life!

05/09/2026

We have an otterly adorable update for you all today! 🦦🥰

Do you remember the young otter that was transferred into our care from Spring Lodge Veterinary Hospital at the end of August? Well we're thrilled to say that he is recovering beautifully! ❤

Originally arriving thin, weak, lethargic and suffering from an issue with one eye (see the last photo), he has made fantastic progress over the past few weeks and is already looking MUCH healthier - he's even become quite feisty! 😂

As many of you may know, otter rehabilitation is not a quick process. It takes months to successfully raise them to the point of release (especially whilst avoiding the risks of taming) and this one still has a long road ahead of him. If you would like to help him grow and thrive, you can support his care at https://www.southessexwildlife.org/donate 🥰

04/09/2026

We have a fantastic update for you all today! ❤🦊❤

After a week of protests, sullen looks and the trashing of his cage if you even dared to look in his general direction, this handsome lad is now back in his home territory! ❤

He originally needed our help after somehow managing to get stuck between a concrete post and metal pole and, although it wasn't too easy to get him free, he has reminded us daily how he was perfectly fine where he was, thank you very much.

Grumpy, sulking and yet still surprisingly adorable, he survived his little mistake without major injury and has now made us sign a waver never to bring it up again 🤐

Best of luck out there big guy! 🦊

Address

Orsett Road
Orsett
RM163BH

Telephone

+441375893893

Website

https://southessexwildlife.org/

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