ANIMAL welfare charity the RSPCA is preparing for its busiest month of the year after receiving more than 4,400 calls about wildlife from people in the South West last June.

In Dorset there were nearly 600 calls that month, while the charity received a total of 3,427 calls from people in the county last year – the second highest number in the South West.

The RSPCA gets a peak in calls over the summer months, which is the height of the breeding season for many wild animals. Nearly half of the calls it received in 2018 were during May, June, and July.

Across England and Wales, the top five species the calls related to last year were pigeons (36,629 calls), red foxes (24,352 calls), gulls (23,467 calls), hedgehogs (10,642 calls) and deer (9152).

The RSPCA’s scientific officer, Evie Button, said: “May, June and July are our busiest months for wildlife, so our officers, centre staff and volunteers are flat out at this time of year.

“Caring for young animals at our wildlife centres can be a round-the-clock job. Some of the most vulnerable animals need to be hand-fed every few hours, even through the night.

“From newborn fox cubs which have lost their mother, to injured blackbirds or tiny orphaned ‘hoglets’, the RSPCA is very busy caring for and rehabilitating animals so they can hopefully be re-introduced to the wild.”

The RSPCA received more than 204,9741 calls about wildlife in 2018 across England and Wales last year, with 22,8302 of those calls from the South West alone.

Animal officers collected nearly 60,000 wild animals in 2018, peaking in June and July with 9,688 and 10,388 collections respectively.

As well as the most common of Britain’s wildlife, the charity was contacted last year about more unusual or rare animals including a Natterer’s bat, a natterjack toad and a hen harrier.

There are four dedicated RSPCA wildlife centres in Somerset, Cheshire, Norfolk, and East Sussex. Wild animals are also treated at the charity’s animal hospitals in London, Birmingham and Manchester, and then cared for at the RSPCA’s centres and branches, or with other wildlife rehabilitation organisations.

To help wildlife in the garden this summer the RSPCA recommends:

• Putting out fresh, clean water for drinking and bathing

• Taking care using lawn-mowers or strimmers and keeping pesticides out of reach of animals

• Tidying away unused sports and garden netting to prevent animals getting tangled