Heusden-Zolder (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Over 1,100 animals, including 1,000+ chickens, were rescued from Kasterlee and taken to the Bird and Mammal Shelter in Heusden-Zolder. Melissa Grootjans says recovery may take 2 months.
As VRT NEWS reported, the Bird and Mammal Shelter in Heusden-Zolder, a municipality in the province of Limburg, Belgium, is helping many animals. They got over 1,100 animals from a garden in Kasterlee. The police found the animals, including over 1,000 chickens, and they weren’t being taken care of properly.
The shelter was already busy, but they had to take care of all these new animals. Volunteers quickly built extra stables and made more space. They wanted to give the animals a safe place to stay, protect them from the weather, and give them straws to sleep on. They also made separate areas for sick animals to keep them safe and healthy.
What will it take to heal 1,100 rescued animals?
Melissa Grootjans said that taking care of all the animals is a lot of work. Feeding, giving water, and giving medicine to so many animals takes a lot of time. The shelter made some changes to help, especially for the chickens.
People worked hard to build more shelters, make more beds, and set up more places to eat. Melissa mentioned that even though it was hard, all the animals are now safe and being watched for any health problems.
According to the officials, the animals rescued from Kasterlee are now being watched closely by vets at the Bird and Mammal Shelter. Many of the chickens are not well. They have a bad cold, but they are getting medicine. The medicine seems to be helping, and the chickens are getting better.
They mentioned that they are eating well, but it will take time for them to get fully healthy. The shelter is working with vets who check on the animals often and change their treatments if needed. The animals also need to be dewormed.
The shelter says the chickens won’t be ready to be adopted soon because they are sick and stressed. Melissa Grootjans said it might take 2 more months for them to get better. This gives the shelter time to help the birds and make sure they are healthy for new homes.
Besides the chickens, the authorities also took other animals from the garden in Kasterlee. These included geese, ducks, pigeons, an alpaca, a sheep, and ponies. Each animal needs different care, like different food, medicine, and places to live. The shelter mentioned that they need help from staff, volunteers, and the public to get the resources they need for this big rescue.
“They are doing relatively well. The donkey is having trouble with his hooves, but an X-ray will be taken of that today,”
Grootjans concludes.
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