Today we were grateful to be able to take two-year-old Pablo to Nose To Tail Dogwash for a complimentary bath. The medicated shampoo, a nutritious diet, stimulating walks and plenty of love will soon have him strong enough to be neutered and adopted.

Keep an eye out for more news about this beautiful young man…

"Rescuing one animal may not change the world, but for that animal, their world is changed forever!" - Unknown

When animals are rescued they can show their appreciation in beautiful ways, as Richard Wiese experienced. This swan's response was very moving when Richard and his friends from The Regal Swan Foundation, Inc. and Swan Lifeline saved this injured bird.

This is how Richard describes that moment:

"I lifted him, and gently pressed on his chest so that he felt confident and safe. After a few moments the swan stopped resisting and literally wrapped himself around my neck.

I could feel his heart beating beside mine. I wanted to shut my eyes in order to enjoy this moment completely.

It's really a wonderful feeling when you sense a true connection and mutual trust - when an animal realizes you mean him no harm".

If you see hedgehogs during the daytime, they need your help – so please keep them safely enclosed and contact Hedgehog Rescue New Zealand.

Womble and Hedgey were only a few days from death when we rescued them. They were suffering excruciating mange that left them skinny, bald, stinking, and caked in layers of their own dead skin. We took them to the shelter where they hungrily ate wet kitten food and drank plenty of water.

Fortunately one of our volunteers is experienced and patient in treating hedgehog mange, so we rushed these youngsters to Laurie. She donned gloves and generously poured warmed cooking oil over them to loosen the skin. (Some people use a soft paintbrush). She then began the gentle task of loosening and removing the dead skin. She told us that warmth is essential to their survival, so heat pads were set up in large, fully enclosed cat carriers and they were put to bed. In the early evening the procedure was repeated and plenty of wet and dry kitten food and water provided for the night.

The next day Womble and Hedgey went to the vet for the first of two parasite killing injections (Ivermectin) and an antibiotic eye cream to smear over the newly exposed damaged skin and around their eyes. The oiling and dead skin removal continued and tweezers were used to carefully remove the flaky skin inside their ears.

By day three only one oiling was needed and Laurie began administering a 3 day course of injectable antibiotics under Womble’s skin to treat an infection.

A second shot of Ivermectin was given a fortnight after the first and tiny prickles have now begun to emerge through their skin. When they have their full complement of spines, Womble and Hedgey will be looking for a safe place to live out their lives.

Huge thanks to Laurie for her dedicated nursing and her deep compassion for these sweet creatures. We are so lucky to have her on our Team!

Check out our video of Womble eating up a storm on the day we rescued him.

It’s lovely to be appreciated.

Mother and daughter, Myra and Sophie, live in different neighbourhoods but they both became concerned when stray cats they were feeding began to breed. Suddenly there were a dozen beautiful felines – and none of them were de-sexed.

We acted quickly – providing traps, carry cages, food and recovery crates before seeking funds for the significant vet bills. Huge thanks to KittyCat Fixers and Community Cat Coalition - Auckland for kindly covering those costs. Myra and Sophie will continue caring for these cats and we will provide them with food when we can. Are you able to donate cat food to us please?

On the day our equipment was returned, Myra gifted us with a beautiful pot-plant…which, as you can see, our shelter animals also thoroughly enjoyed.