Story
Weʼre raising funds to To fight for / feed, rescue and rehab birds as well as create a suitable space for wild birds to grow, rest or recuperate in as needed
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi
Foundation For Feathered Friends
Whilst i started this enterprise alone, now i have a few devoted Friends, throughout North Wales, who help with transporting and rehabbing the birds.
This journey began with feeding orphaned gulls, then the flocks of gulls , then pigeons and then birds of all different species. This is probably the most joyful part of what i do as the interaction with the different birds who come out just to stand by me when i am putting seed or whatever out for them is magical. A couple of winters ago i trialled putting fat ball feeders out for the little songsters in the woods. It was very successful and continues.
The rescue side started with 50 pigeons that had been blocked up alive in a building in Caernarfon in 2019. They were freed and we work with the Pest Controller employed to destroy them to this day by saving nestlings.
The next discovery was that there was a great need to help 'finders' in the UK who needed help to place their bird with a Rescue/Sanctuary or Vet. i realised how panic stricken i was when i found my first injured bird. Messages come in daily from around the UK asking for help with a precious little life. Some day we may even have a web site which is what the original intention was.
The next thing was the need for advocacy which involves 'encouraging' Organisations to remove cruel netting in which birds die slow, tortured deaths or when there is culling of birds deemed to be a 'nuisance'. None of this is necessary or effective in the long term anyway. we still assist with every request for help that comes in. Some of the companies that have been encouraged to help the plight of birds are Avanti West Coast, B3 Living, B&Q, Bluewater Shopping Centre, Brighton Marina Group, Central Bedfordshire Council, Denbighshire County Council, Halfords, Home Bargain, Hungerford Town Council, National Highways, Network Rail, NHS Property Services, Savills, South Coast Ambulance Services, Tesco, The Range, Rhyl, TransPennine Express, Transport For Wales, Westminster City Council, White Rose Shopping Centre Rhyl, Zurich Assurance Ltd and quite a few more! There have been failures along the way unfortunately with companies such as East Midland Railways, JD Sports Wigan and Wickes Lincoln. If we could have a Black List these would be on that list for their treatment of birds. The work is ongoing and sometimes exhausting and the hope is always that one day there will not be the need for it.
With the outbreak of Avian Flu in 2022 many Rescues and the RSPCA stopped taking in birds and so private people needed to get involved in order to help them and so i gathered a few Friends, who felt the same as i did, across North Wales. This has become ever more important in 2023 as the RSPCA have changed their policy and will not be helping any wild birds at all.
That situation continued with increased vehemence in 2024. The one time we said we were full, as we really believed that the Vet concerned would be able to find another space for the gull) the gull was euthanised. So we ran ourselves into the ground with the sad realisation that it was all down to us
To continue we need more volunteers and we do rely on donations to help us to pay vet bills, fuel, medications, food and supplies. Most Finders do not make a donation when they give us a bird so we exist on a shoe string. we need to constantly stock up on medicines etc for the medicine cabinet in advance of a casualty.
we have finally got a new shed and have erected an aviary on the end for any new fledglings and casualties in the Caernarfon district itself. we are now also weatherproofing it ready for the winter to come and so that stricter hygiene can be maintained inside.
We also have facilities now for pigeons in Abergele and thanks to the wonderful group 'Animals Little Helpers' we also have an incubator for the tiny nestlings that need help.
Whilst i could once feed the different species daily in winter, due to the other demands on time i can only manage this 4 times a week now. i only use premium grade seeds, meal worms and wheat free kibbles so that the birds are being fed on good nutrients, although i shop around for the best prices. The wonderful local chippie ~ Ainsworths ~ gives us the trimmings so that the gulls on the beach (and it appears the crows!) can have actual fish. Although this does need to be supplemented with either kibbles or brown bread. (not the best but better than starvation.)
Due to the number of birds shot with air weapons we started a Parliamentary petition. Despite this making it into Parliament under 'Other Business' and being signed by all the Ministers present regardless of Political Parties, the Petition was not supported by the very people who could have made the difference due to their own popularity with the public. Everyone was contacted. No one responded. Shame on them as with one tweet they could have made this happen.
The disabled birds go to a Sanctuary where they can be with other disabled birds. They live full and happy lives. We have witnessed this. When we send a bird to Sanctuary we always make a reasonable donation as the Sanctuary now has the bird for the duration of his natural life. It would not be fair if we did not. We do believe that birds can be happy in captivity. The only problem is that there are so few spaces for them. So now we have had to stop giving any wing amputations when before we could. Its not easy looking into a bird's eyes that wants to live and not being able to give them that chance.
As the number of birds we help increases we have increasing costs and this is the reason for the flexible target. In July and August 2023 we rescued, fed, sheltered and where necessary medicated and provided vet treatment to the 90 birds that we then took to Rescues and Sanctuary. On top of that we still had the birds that did fly, the ones that did not make it and the ones still needing rehabilitation. This is a heavy load for anyone let alone a handful of people working from their own homes.
In 2024 in we have rescued app 300 gulls and it appears that now we rescue swans and sea birds since there is no one else able/willing to do so. We then transport them to a place where they can receive he expertise we do not have.
You can find us on social media platforms and learn more about how we help on a day to day basis. https://www.facebook.com/FoundationForFeatheredFriends Facebook Instagram Twitter Sadly, due to lack of time most of our work is documented on Facebook.
In September 2024 we took the further step of starting NORTH WALES WILD BIRD CARE. This was to avoid the confusion of which birds we can help physically and which ones we can only help remotely. We now have some dedicated Admins on NWWBC so that the turn around time for a response is as short as possible.
We have a new Fundraising page on which we host Events that are fun and still help the birds. It has made a huge difference and we are very grateful to Gillian who approached us and asked if we would like some help!
We are, above all OPTIMISTIC. We think more people are opening their eyes and are prepared to CARE. Grateful thanks to all that do.
For 'with our love we could save the World' 💞
. If you decide to help us in any way thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
