The RSPCA urges people to store away garden netting to prevent harm to animals. Recent incidents in London, notably Ealing, involved both wild and domestic animals getting trapped.
Rescuers responded to fox cubs caught in nets, with one cub sadly dying after being ensnared in old pigeon netting. The charity was called multiple times to the same area before the netting was removed. Surviving fox cubs are under care at South Essex Wildlife Hospital.
ARO Jade Guthrie rescued a cat entangled in netting in Carshalton and two jays stuck in bird netting in Kensington. ARO Holly Walker freed a fox cub caught in football netting at a Harpenden school. Inspector Dale Grant rescued a fox cub with a tangled tail in Finchley on 21 April.
Jade said: “Netted fencing and netting used for gardening or in sport can be really dangerous for animals.
“We would urge those using netting for sports to remove and store all nets after their game and put any discarded or old netting safely in a bin. Any garden netting, such as pond netting, should be replaced with solid metal mesh”.
The RSPCA has launched a new campaign For Every Kind, urging people to care about the lives of every animal and carry out one million acts of kindness for animals to mark its 200th anniversary. To find out your kind of kindness and turn it into action for animals visit: rspca.org.uk/everykind.
For advice on what to do if you see a wild animal in distress, please visit the RSPCA’s website.
Chris Mitchell is the founder and editor of Harrow Online, Harrow’s leading local news platform.
He launched Harrow Online in 2010 as a Facebook page sharing local news and information. Since then, it has grown into a trusted source for breaking news, crime, council decisions, planning, transport, business and community stories across the borough.
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