About The Cullompton Wildlife Care Centre

For the past 16 years, Doreen and Martin have run a small but very efficient wildlife care centre from their home in Cullompton, specialising in the hand rearing and care of orphaned or injured wildlife. As a former Registered Nurse and 20 years experience of breeding exotic birds, Doreen transferred these skills to caring for wildlife. From caring for a few creatures orphaned locally for neighbours, this has grown like topsy over the years with many different species of wildlife being hand reared and several hundred creatures overall being cared for every year.

Click on the Photomosaic above to see Martin and Doreen -
made from pictures of the animals they care for!
You may have to click on the picture again to enlarge it
as Explorer sometimes shrinks the pictures to fit your screen.
Another Photomosaic is on the thank-you page after you donate...

Each year the intake of wildlife casualties increases and with the increasing demand, Doreen and Martin have needed to invest in an assortment of specialised equipment to help support the care of ailing or very young wildlife. Throughout the summer months a large amount of orphans are cared for including rabbits, leverets, tawny owlets, little owlets, buzzards, tiny hoglets, bat-pups, newly hatched ducklings, baby squirrels as well as the usual mass of bird nestlings, some only hours old. There is the occasional need to take in creatures such as swans or young fawn but as the centre does not have adequate facilities for large creatures, initial rehydration or first aid care is given and then they are moved to more suitable care facilities. Fox-cubs are kept until weaning and then are transferred.

tiny fox cub recovering after being found abandoned and lifeless at the side of a river

Every year there is a number of creatures admitted for care as a result of cruelty or carelessness. Most affected seem to be ducks and hedgehogs, some with horrific injuries inflicted upon them. Over the past two years, several traumatised hedgehogs have been rescued by disgusted adults finding them being used as a cricket or football. Although Doreen and Martin will spend exhausting amounts of time doing their utmost, unfortunately, not all can be saved with the damage sometimes being too extensive. Already this year, two tawny owls have been cared for with injuries sustained after being caught up in discarded fishing line. This is something that has sadly become a common occurrence over recent years. A young fox-cub was found in a most bedraggled state by an elderly lady who initially thought it was a small cat. Very close to death, unconscious, dehydrated and with three shot wounds. Hours of intensive care and rehydration were needed by the couple to pull the cub back to a responsive state, but within a week, it was well on the way to recovery. Once fully weaned and strong, it was moved to a larger facility in Somerset to be rehabilitated with other young foxes.

young fox-cub shot in 3 places found by an elderly lady whilst walking her dog

Many admissions come as a result of being orphaned, falling out of nests, road accidents, window collisions, victims of cats or in the case of hedgehogs as a result of being lit in bonfires. As well as receiving casualties from a local radius, many people are prepared to travel a distance from a wide area to obtain help for creatures that other organisations have refused. This has involved creatures coming in from Exeter, Ilfracombe, Bideford, Barnstaple, Taunton, Lyme Regis, Honiton, Axmouth, Axminster Kingsbridge, Newton Abbot, Torquay, Chagford, Tavistock, Okehampton, the furthest being a baby squirrel found at the foot of a tree in the Quantock Hills having the evidence of falling from a height and 3 baby squirrels from a tree surgeon from West Dorset. People are referred from a variety of sources including vet practices across the region, The Bat Conservation Trust, Blue Cross, the RSPCA or by people having made contact with the RSPB or Devon Wildlife Trust, neither who unfortunately, deal with actual wildlife creatures.

Although the couple run a very small concern in comparison to some of the well known animal sanctuaries, since January 2005 there have been 1,884 creatures cared for. As an example of what the couple care for, in 2005, 577 creatures were admitted and cared for. This included 385 garden birds, 7 long-eared & 28 pipistrelle bats, 7 field mice, 9 baby rabbits, 4 baby squirrels, 2 swans, 9 ducks, 17 ducklings, 2 barn owls, 13 tawny owls, 6 little owls, 3 buzzards, 55 hedgehogs, 2 baby weasel, 1 fox cub, 1 escaped Chinese quail, (3 parrots & 3 cockatiel - admitted for care whilst their estranged owners found). The couple are unable to take in sea-birds, crows, magpies or other corvids.

tiny squirrel rescued after falling from a tree on the Quantock Hills	3 rescued when a tree cutter felled a tree, unaware that there were baby squirrels within

In 2006 there was an increase with a total of 645 creatures being admitted. (In addition - 2 batches of kittens, rejected by the mother at 5 & 10 days for hand-rearing). Whilst bird numbers were reduced due to restrictions imposed with Avian flu concern, there was a significant increase in the numbers of hedgehogs and bats to the point where for the first time, further admissions had to be refused owing to the volume of creatures needing care and attention. This sometimes brought hostile reactions from people arriving unexpectedly at the door with a creature, something not advocated by the couple for who, after all, it is their home. As a voluntary concern, the couple provide all care and resources at their own expense and risk, and do so with limitations of both time and space. Also is the need to be mindful of Health & Safety factors as well as the animal regulations that came into force in 2007 for dealing with wildlife.

Over the years, all of the care has been carried out in the confines of their relatively small home, clearly causing some difficulties with the ever-increasing intake of creatures. With the need to continue full-time work to pay for the spiralling costs of increased wildlife care coupled with little respite from heavy care demands, the hectic lifestyle took its toll with Doreen succumbing to a serious bout of pnuemonia and pluerisy. This was the stage when serious decisions had to be made if the wildlife work was to continue and highlighted the need to have a separate room, having outgrown the small utility area of their home. At some considerable personal financial cost to Doreen and Martin, building work commenced late in October to have a small room built, and was completed in May 08, with just the purpose built vet-cages to purchase and the garden to sort out now. Unfortunately, to accommodate the room, garden space was lost including the two large avairies dwelling on the site. This together with the residual lung problem from Doreen's illness will unfortunately, significantly reduce the capacity to provide bird care other than owls, in the future.

	Hoglet Gallery!

The care centre has been inspected by an RSPCA Officer, who greatly approved of the work and contribution being made to conserve wildlife. Ideally, Doreen would really like to have suitable premises to develop a dedicated wildlife hospital where others, particularly younger people can learn and develop the skills required to save wildlife. Sadly, this will remain just a dream with funding support for wildlife work being apparently non existent.

Over the many years, the voluntary work has been purely self-funded by Martin and Doreen costing £5,000 - £6,000 each year just for day to day equipment, feeds and treatment costs, increasing as the creature demands become greater. All attempts to draw grant or lottery funding to support the work has come to no avail with there being no support or interest for wildlife related activities.

The wildlife work has a dedicated bank account and it is hoped that people bringing creatures to the centre, might provide a small donation to support some of the care and treatments required. Any donations towards this would be most welcome.