Otter pup discovery in Dingwall prompts rescue mission
A Belgian woman who has only recently arrived in Dingwall was thrilled after rescuing a vulnerable one-month-old otter pup which had become separated from its parents.
Annick Cornu was out walking with her dog Skye – named after the island by the Scotland-mad family – when the dog noticed something in the grass that on closer inspection turned out to be a tiny otter pup.
Mrs Cornu searched for his parents but they were nowhere to be found and returned home to see what action she should take and returned to the park to scoop up the weak creature.
She called the SSPCA who arrived within the hour.
“One of the reasons that made us want to move to Scotland is the respect for animals and nature so much more than in Belgium."
And now having been discovered by Skye, it is on Skye where the wee otter will now grow up and be reintroduced to the wild.
Mrs Cornu said: “I was walking with my dogs in the early morning when my dog Skye was sniffing in the grass and suddenly wanted to 'attack' something. I took him short and looked and saw a furry thing – I was wondering if it was a rat maybe.
“So I took the dogs home and looked on the internet to see what I would have to do if it was an otter. I went back with gloves and a towel. It was still there, very vulnerable in the grass.
“I looked but saw no other otter activity. Another walker saw me and told me it was indeed an otter. So I took him home, he was very calm, which was maybe not such a good sign and called the SSPCA.
“They were here very fast and arrived after an hour. He is about one month old and he was weak. So the inspector told me it was a good thing I took him."
“It's really awesome for me. I am very active in animal rescue. My both dogs are rescued from Romania. I go every year for one week there to help a lady who rescues dogs from the street.
“One of the reasons that made us want to move to Scotland is the respect for animals and nature so much more than in Belgium. Good for school and maybe work and so close to all the natural beauty. So I started looking and came across Dingwall.
Scottish SPCA chief superintendent, Mike Flynn, said: “We were called to rescue an otter cub in Dingwall by a concerned member of the public on July 22.
“The cub was transferred to the International Otter Survival Fund’s Otter Hospital on Skye, who are a fantastic organisation that we work very closely with.
“Being able to work with other local wildlife organisations in this way is invaluable in cases like this where taking the rescue to our National Wildlife Centre would involve a much longer journey and cause the animal more unnecessary stress.
“If anyone finds a baby animal that they’re concerned about we would urge them to be Wildlife Wise.”
