Weird and wonderful animal stories
Animal rescue charities are often on the front line for animal abuse cases, lost pets, and the worst cases of neglect.
But some days, something will happen that leaves you with a smile.
SPCA marketing and communications co-ordinator Paige Janssen said a person once called the Wellington centre to ask if they could bring in a butterfly they’d found, because it ‘‘looked lost’’.
Another time, they received a call from someone concerned for a dog tied up on the street, waiting for its owner. They stayed on the line, and when the owner came back, the caller followed them to make sure the dog was OK. As they watched, the man took the dog with him into a strip club.
One man called wanting advice on how to keep wild pigeons as pets because he loved them so much. The SPCA informed the man he wouldn’t be allowed to keep them in a cage or aviary as it would breach the law to keep wild animals contained because of the stress it would cause.
‘‘However, we told him that if he were to feed them from a little bird house, and they were free to fly around as usual that would be fine,’’ Janssen said.
Someone in Masterton once found a goldfish on their lawn, she said. ‘‘They managed to save it and put it in water and bring it into our care. The fish was adopted out and is now living with his new family.’’
‘‘We have no idea how the goldfish ended up on the lawn – the only thing we could assume is that it may have been picked up by another animal.’’
As well as the funny stories, there were successes, too. Mike the peacock was one of those.
‘‘Mike was found with a leg injury, limping and unable to fly, and rushed into our care.’’
In just a matter of weeks, Mike was back to strutting his stuff and soon to be available for adoption.
Five mice were surrendered into their care, named after boy band One Direction. All five had since been adopted.
Gus the red-eared slider turtle arrived at the SPCA after he was discovered living in a dirty bucket of water without food. The vets diagnosed him with shell rot – an infection of the shell. After weeks of care, he found a home.
HUHA (Helping You Help Animals) founder Carolyn PressMcKenzie
recalled a phone call they’d had from a woman who was standing in a pet store, in front of a tank containing a turtle. Or was it a tortoise? The woman wasn’t sure, but watching it pace up and down its tiny prison, she was determined to help it.
An hour and $1500 later, the woman handed over the tortoise (as it turned out to be) to HUHA. The pet store had sold her no food, or given any advice on how to keep or care for her new pet.
The tortoise, named Wilson, now lives a happy life with one of the HUHA staff. But the next day, the pet store’s tank had been repopulated with another tortoise.
‘‘It’s a whole new culture of rescuing the animals from pet stores, but you’re feeding the beast,’’ Press-McKenzie said.
People often called for advice caring for magpies and possums – even wallabies. They rarely brought them in to the centre, or left their name. As pest animals, ‘‘people try to fly them under the radar’’.