Kentish Express Ashford & District
Six-month rescue op to catch rowdy peacock a success
A rowdy peacock spotted “roaming” Kent streets and hopping onto houses and fences for more than six months has been rescued.
Volunteers from Dartford Animal Rescue were called to Rochester Road in Gravesend on April 9 after reports of the bird making “loud noises”.
Ciara O’Hare, who runs the rescue, attended with sister and volunteer Rosie O’Hare and animal rescuer Melissa Doris.
Ciara, 25, said: “The peacock had been roaming around the area for six months to a year and had been crossing a main road to sleep in a tree at night.
“He’d been chilling between three gardens and the neighbours had all become quite attached; they fed him and gave him the name Saataj.
“Now that it’s coming into breeding season he started to scream and make a really loud call because he was looking for a mate, so the neighbours became quite concerned.”
The rescue organisation, which launched three years ago, had not caught a peacock before but is used to catching other birds like chickens and geese.
Ciara added: “Rosie is very good at these kinds of rescues, she’s fantastic at catching them and she’s got years of experience.
“We went along and he was on the roof of a bungalow. He was roaming around gardens then hopping onto fences and roofs.
“So we started playing peahen noises to try and coax him down to somewhere we could try to catch him.”
They managed to get him to follow the noises down into a parking area behind some flats.
It was there that Rosie managed to get a hold of the feathered friend and cover his eyes.
Ciara added: “It was completely stress-free for him.
“We managed to get him into a wrap, and popped him into an IKEA bag and brought him back to the rescue.”
The rescue centre is currently raising money to help fund a new treatment building. Donations can be made by searching DartfordAnimalRescue on the JustGiving website.
Saataj was later taken to The Retreat Animal Rescue Farm Sanctuary in High Halden, Ashford, where he has been introduced to the other peacocks and peahens.
There is a cafe at the sanctuary and the residents who looked after him will be able to go and visit him.
Rosie, 23, added: “I’m very happy for our little guy, knowing he’s going to have a group of friends and hopefully get himself the girlfriend he desperately wants.”