The company which ran the pilot badger cull in Somerset have applied for an extension of two to three weeks.
Natural England, the national executive responsible for protecting and improving England's natural enviroment is currently considering the application.
Gloucestershire is expected to also apply for an extension. The Department for Enviroment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has said that current indications suggest the six week pilot cull was humane, safe and effective in reducing the badger population. The Chief Veterinary Officer has advised the government that by...
The RSPCA has confirmed it will not call for farmers involved in the badger cull to be named following a complaint by the NFU to the Charity Commission.
The NFU raised a number of concerns with the Charity Commission about the RSPCA’s campaigns on the badger cull and its activities relating to live animal exports. The concerns included the RSPCA’s Chief Executive calling for farmers involved in the badger cull to be named and for a boycott of milk from farmers in badger cull areas.
NFU President Peter Kendall said he was pleased with the outcome of the Charity Commission’s...
The summer holidays are with us, and that means millions of Brits are heading off on holiday. However, one family member is often left behind, the family pet.
The RSPCA has released a statement saying that an increasing number of pets are being left nothing but piles of food whilst their owners go away. This type of ‘care’ is extremely dangerous, as the hot weather could cause the left out food to become inedible.
The RSPCA says that they are not trying to sway people from going on holiday. However, they believe all pets should be left with adequate care arrangements whilst...
The RSPCA has hit out at owners who left their dogs in hot cars over the weekend, despite repeated warnings about the dangers.
The animal welfare charity was inundated with hundreds of complaints over the weekend from people who spotted animals suffering as the temperature rocketed to 90 degrees in some parts of the country.
Around 350 calls about animals trapped in hot cars came into the RSPCA’s National Control Centre over the weekend of 6-7 July. Unfortunately the heat wave also claimed a number of lives.
A seven-year old female Staffordshire bull terrier died...
Come along to Little Valley's Annual Shelter Day and Fun Dog Show. Gates open at 11am and the event runs till 4pm. There are refreshments, home made cakes, a bar with Pimms, BBQ, dog agility, stalls including plants, books, jewellery, bric-a-brac, jigsaws as well as fun and games and a grand prize draw. The weather forecast is good too! All money raised from this event goes directly to your local animal shelter, Little Valley. We are easy to find - just past Pocombe Bridge. Entry is £1 for adults, 50p for children and under 5's go free. We look forward to seeing you there.
The RSPCA have reported an alarming increase in animals being abandoned across England and Wales.
In the last year, the RSPCA were called out to rescue more than 37,000 abandoned animals and received a call asking for help every 30 seconds.
Every year the charity sees a sharp rise in abandonments at the height of summer. Evidence from the RSPCA and other animal charities suggests some people chose to get rid of their pets rather than pay for them to be looked after while they are on holiday.
In other cases, money may be spent on holidays and other summer ‘treats’...
Freedom Food – the RSPCA’s food labelling scheme - today launches its first ever photo competition for talented amateur photographers to show off their best snaps of farm animals.
The Fab Farm Animals competition is a celebration of what makes farm animals so special. It is being run by Freedom Food in a bid to help re-connect people with where their food comes from and the importance of good welfare for farm animals.
All kinds of photos can be submitted from quirky cows to dabbling ducks, the serious to the humorous, and close ups or landscapes, as contest organiser Liam...
On the eve of a potentially devastating badger cull, Team Badger has published a report exposing the myths which underpin these misguided plans.
Team Badger’s ‘Mythbusters Report’ has been published to correct inaccuracies and misconceptions being used to justify the killing of thousands of badgers. The group, made up of the RSPCA, IFAW, the Humane Society International (UK), Born Free, Dr Brian May’s ‘Save Me’ organisation, the League Against Cruel Sports and many other national and local organisations, aims to demonstrate that the near-extermination of the badgers will have...
The RSPCA is warning gardeners to tread carefully to avoid harming the wildlife which may be living in their gardens.
Every year the RSPCA receives calls about animals with distressing and often fatal garden injuries which in most cases are completely avoidable.
Past cases include a toad with its hind legs chopped off by a strimmer, a hedgehog burnt in pampas grass clearance, a blackbird speared by a garden fork and a toad stuck in a watering can.
Already this spring we have seen several hedgehogs caught by strimmers, a snake fatally injured by a lawnmower in...
UK nature is in trouble – that is the conclusion of a groundbreaking report published today by a coalition of leading conservation and research organisations.
Scientists working side-by-side from 25 wildlife organisations have compiled a stock take of our native species – the first of its kind in the UK. The report reveals that 60% of the species studied have declined over recent decades. More than one in ten of all the species assessed are under threat of disappearing from our shores altogether.
The State of Nature report will be launched by Sir David Attenborough and UK...
