Raccoon on the loose spotted in Cornwall garden
Cornwall residents have previously been asked to be wary of raccoons after a stray animal was spotted in a resident’s yard.
RSPCA Cornwall shared a video taken by someone in the Gwennap area, showing the native North American mammal roaming freely on a garden patio.
The agency told locals to “be aware that a stray raccoon was spotted in the Gwennap area today” and confirmed it had contacted relevant agencies and experts.
Anyone who can contain or safely secure the raccoon is asked to call the RSPCA helpline.
Falmouth Package He reported that all local zoos confirmed their raccoons were safely secured, suggesting the animal may have been someone’s pet.
At around 6pm on Thursday it was reported that the animal had been found in a nearby greenhouse and the RSPCA and a vet were on their way.
It is the second time this month that an exotic animal has wandered loose in Cornwall.
A four-month-old flamingo missing from St Ives wildlife park was discovered living in France earlier this week. Frankie the flamingo, born in July, escaped from a walled garden in Paradise Park on Sunday morning (November 2) despite having the feathers clipped on one of his wings.
After more than a week of concern for his keepers, photos taken in Tréflez, Brittany, revealed Frankie had flown south and reached northern France.
Nick Reynolds, manager of Paradise Park, said: Independent: “Some photos have surfaced showing a flamingo in France. New photos have just arrived, they are amazing and we can definitely see the wing that we clipped, so we can definitely identify it as Frankie 100 percent.”
Although he was “devastated” to go, Mr Reynolds said he would not return unless he decided to fly home himself.
“The logistics of getting him back here are a non-starter,” he said. “First of all, you have to catch him in France. Secondly, we have to get the French to allow him to be taken to a quarantine facility and quarantined for 30 days. Then you have to get export permits, import permits, health certificates, quarantine him.” [in the UK] When he returns to the park for 30 days, there will be another 30 days of quarantine here after the external quarantine.
