Cleethorpes Wildlife Rescue

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Cleethorpes Wildlife Rescue

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04/11/2026

A little sneak peek behind the scenes at what will soon become our mammal isolation ward!

Primarily designed with foxes and badgers in mind, this will provide a dedicated space for animals who aren’t quite ready to move into larger enclosures. For example, those requiring regular treatments, ongoing monitoring or a little extra time in a more controlled environment.

Our mini clinic is certainly starting to take shape!

Internally, it’s now fully insulated, with appropriate ventilation, boarded walls, fresh paintwork, new flooring and, of course, electricity run all the way from the other side of the site thanks to Will from EISS.

We also received an update from Plaztek today, showing us how the two walk-in kennels and adjoining side bays are coming along. There’s not too much work left to do on those now!

It’s all starting to come together, and we can’t wait to get this space up and running. Another important step towards improving the facilities we can offer the wildlife coming through our doors.

CleethorpesWildlifeRescue.com

31/10/2026

Happy Halloween from Cleethorpes Wildlife Rescue!

Wishing all our wonderful supporters, volunteers and followers a safe and spooktacular Halloween!

28/10/2026

Update on the oiled gulls! ‼️

Firstly, a huge thank you to everyone who has dropped off bottles of Fairy Liquid to help us remove cooking oil from the many gulls who have been coming through our doors, particularly more frequently over the last few weeks. Your support has been hugely appreciated.

Unfortunately, caring for these birds comes at a significant cost, especially when we have boxes and boxes of oiled birds arriving at once. When you add together the weeks and weeks spent in rehabilitation, veterinary care and medication where required, cleaning supplies, constant food, bedding and all the other essentials involved in getting an oiled bird back to the wild, we estimate that the total cost of caring for these casualties so far will be somewhere in the region of £2,000.

Following a formal complaint we raised with the food factory, we received a response outlining some of the additional measures they intend to take to prevent further incidents.

We also heard back from the Environment Agency, who carried out an unannounced inspection of the factory. During that visit, the factory was found to be compliant with the relevant requirements. We understand that the Environment Agency intends to continue carrying out unannounced visits, and the factory has also confirmed to them that further preventative measures will be introduced.

That all sounds promising, but unfortunately, the situation hasn’t yet come to an end.

Just one day after receiving this update, we admitted yet another oiled gull, found on a street just outside the factory.

We’ll continue to monitor the situation, care for the birds who need our help, and push for effective measures to prevent further casualties. Every bird affected means more suffering for wildlife and more pressure on wildlife rescue services left to pick up the pieces.

Thank you to everyone who has helped us so far. Whether you’ve donated cleaning supplies, contributed towards the cost of care, or helped raise your concerns, thank you.

We shall continue to push forward!

27/10/2026

Warning: Potentially distressing video ‼️

Early this evening, we received a report of a cygnet being attacked by adult swans in the River Freshney. The initial footage sent to us may be difficult to watch, but we want to reassure everyone that the young bird is now safe and recovering in our care.

With daylight already fading, our volunteers gathered the necessary water rescue equipment and headed out to see whether we could reach the cygnet safely.

When our team arrived, the cygnet had disappeared from sight. However, the person who reported the incident had seen her head into some reeds, and with the cob still remaining close to the last known location, we suspected she might still be in that area.

Our volunteers suited up in their water rescue gear and began searching the area.

Thankfully, it wasn’t long before they located her. The cygnet had become tightly tangled in some sharp brambles just up the riverbank.

Although the brambles had left her trapped, they had also inadvertently provided some protection from the adult swans, preventing further attacks and making it possible for our team to carry out a much safer rescue than if she had remained exposed in the open water.

Our volunteers carefully freed the young bird and brought her back to the rescue, where we could assess her injuries.

At this time of year, cygnets begin leaving their parents and searching for new locations of their own. This cygnet doesn’t appear to belong to the resident family on this stretch of the river, so it’s likely she had ventured into their territory while making her own way in the big bad world.

Unfortunately, she seems to have picked the wrong place, and the resident adults were quick to make it clear that she wasn’t welcome.

It’s a difficult part of growing up for young swans, and sadly, it can sometimes put them in very real danger.

For now, though, this cygnet is safe, receiving the care she needs and recovering from her ordeal.

We’d like to say a huge thank you to the person who reported the incident and made sure she wasn’t left to fend for herself. Without that call, the outcome could have been very different.

And, of course, thank you to our volunteers, who headed out as the light was fading and worked to bring her to safety.

24/10/2026

As the clocks go back, please take extra care when driving!

With darker evenings arriving earlier, the risk of wildlife road collisions increases.

Our wildlife ambulance service sees an increase in wildlife collisions during these months, with animals such as deer, foxes, badgers and hedgehogs particularly at risk.

Please slow down where possible, stay vigilant, especially on rural roads or approaching bends, and watch out for wildlife crossing.

A few extra seconds of caution could save a life.

Thank you for helping us protect wildlife.

24/10/2026

A spectacular display of those stunning feathers by Blue, a young barn owl in our care!

CleethorpesWildlifeRescue.com

23/10/2026

We know this might be a bit of a long shot, but we’re hoping someone might be able to help!

We’re looking for assistance transporting some fantastic enclosures from another wildlife rescue near Manchester back to our rescue centre in Grimsby during the first week of November.

These enclosures would make a real difference to our work, providing much-needed additional capacity to care for sick and injured wildlife across Grimsby and Cleethorpes.

If you know anyone with a suitable vehicle who might be able to help, or if you work for a transport company that could assist, we’d love to hear from you!

Even if you can’t help yourself, sharing this post could help us reach the right person or transport company.

Thank you for your continued support. It really does make a difference to the wildlife in our care.

23/10/2026

A huge thank you to Starks Appliances for their incredibly generous donation of a heat pump tumble dryer to our rescue!

We get through an enormous amount of washing and drying every single day, from towels to the many other essentials needed to keep our patients clean, warm and comfortable.

This fantastic donation will make a real difference to our day-to-day work, helping us keep on top of the endless laundry that comes with caring for hundreds of wildlife casualties.

We’re so grateful to Starks Appliances for supporting our rescue and helping us care for the wildlife that needs us.

Thank you for making a difference and thank you to everyone who came forward to help!

17/10/2026

Another one! 🦦

Just a few days after Rudolf left us to start his journey to The Wild Otter Trust, we had another call from them asking if we could temporarily take in an otter that had been reported to them.

The care home looking after her had raised some concerns, as she seemed unusually subdued, so we arranged for one of our volunteers to go and collect her.

She’s since been checked over by our partners at East Lincs Emergency Vets and admitted into our care.

Unlike Rudolf, who left us last week, this little girl is still very much a cub and hasn’t been fully weaned from her mum yet.

For now, we’ll be concentrating on getting her stabilised and rehydrated before she has another assessment. Hopefully, once she’s well enough to travel, she’ll be given the green light to continue her journey to The Wild Otter Trust in Devon.

It’s certainly not what we expected just days after saying goodbye to Rudolf, but we’re glad we can help give this little girl the best chance possible.

We’ll keep you updated on how she gets on.

16/10/2026

We’re onto our final few Jurassic World patients!

We must admit, this year has been quite something, with more gull chicks admitted than in any previous year.

With many of these species classified as red or amber under the UK’s Birds of Conservation Concern, we’re incredibly proud to have played our part in helping them. But wow, it’s been hard work! And, perhaps a little selfishly, we’re very happy to see the end of gull chick season.

Our final few are getting close to being ready for release, and once they’re safely on their way, we’ll turn our attention to reviewing the season. What went well, what didn’t, and what we can do differently to improve things for next year.

Fortunately, we managed to catch this photo just in time, as one of our younger patients practised a few wing stretches!

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