‘Unnecessary death’: Hedgehog dies after being painted blue and yellow in Leeds
“When are people going to stop and think about their actions?” 💔
A hedgehog that was painted blue and yellow in Leeds has died, it has been announced.
Four people have been arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty after the discovery of the adult female spiny mammal in a garden in Yeadon. Named Honey, she was rescued by staff at Prickly Pigs Hedgehog Rescue in Otley but has sadly since passed away.
Due to the paint, the poor creature was unable to “curl up” into a ball and was left with “breathing problems” because of the fumes. Staff attempted to help Honey by scrubbing clean each individual spine to remove the oil-based paint and also administered pain relief.
However, unfortunately, the animal died on Wednesday (July 22) afternoon.
In a tragic update on social media yesterday, Prickly Pigs Hedgehog Rescue wrote: “We are very sorry to say that Honey died this afternoon. We don’t normally post on here about the losses within the rescue but many people have been asking about her and her story has been shared across the country.
“We are still working with the local police so can not share any more details about her. To say that I’m devastated is an understatement, and I just cannot believe, or understand, what some people are capable of doing to any living thing.
“I know from some comments that people have found what happened to her as funny or commented that she’s ’only a hedgehog’ but it does not matter if this was done to a hedgehog or cat or a dog or any other animal, it just should not have happened FULL STOP. It is CRUEL and a completely UNNECESSARY death.
The post continued: “Prickly Pigs Hedgehog Rescue is just run from our home and, together with a fantastic group of volunteers, we are trying our hardest to help sick, injured or orphaned hedgehogs.
“It is an uphill battle that every wildlife rescue in the country is facing, hedgehogs are only on the Red List because of the problems that humans are causing. When are people going to stop and think about their actions and the impact they are having on nature?
“Thank you to everyone that has made positive comments and are equally disgusted in what has happened. It’s times like this when I wonder what is the point of running the rescue. It’s a 24/7 job 365 days a year.
“On top of everything we are also currently fighting for the rescue to stay open as a couple of our neighbours are trying to get us shut down. Apologies again for this ranting post but I just had to say it how it is sometimes.”
Police have arrested two men, aged 44 and 21, and two boys, aged 17 and 15, on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.
A spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police’s Wildlife and Rural Crime Unit said: “All four have been bailed for further enquires to take place.
“Anyone with information is asked to call 101 or use the Live Chat option on our website quoting reference 13260401913.
“Information can also be given anonymously to the independent Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.”
Hedgehogs are in decline in Britain and are now listed as ‘vulnerable’ on Britain's red list of mammals.
According to the latest State of Britain's hedgehogs report, numbers of hedgehogs have fallen by up to 30% in urban areas and 50% in rural areas since the turn of the century.