Wednesday 24 August 2016

Bat rescue

We found a bat in the middle of  a hot day clinging to an old log on the pond side path.  So after seeking advice from the nearby Knepp Castle Estate we found a small box in the cabin and using a soft towel, gently lifted the poorly creature into it. Our visitor Marc Easton took her for treatment to a local bat  hospital. Bat experts there found it to be an adult  female long eared brown bat who has had a baby earlier this year. She was  suffering from a prolapsed anus, and dehydration. She is being given water , food , antibiotics and painkillers and is now expected to make a full recovery. When she is completely better she will be brought back to the area where she was found, and released. Bats have a travelling range of 10 kilometres, so she will soon find either her original roost, or another nearby.

At the bat hospital

We'd like to think that when she is released she will look something like this:
Long Eared Brown Bat (Library picture)

Thanks to Sussex Bat Rescue and the experts at Knepp Castle Estate.