Tiggywinkles is a British
animal welfare charity and wildlife hospital, also known as St Tiggywinkles and The Wildlife Hospital Trust. Tiggywinkles, which specialises in the rescue and treatment of
wild animal
Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted fo ...
s, was founded in 1983 as the Wildlife Hospital Trust by
Les Stocker as the United Kingdom's first wildlife hospital.
The name derives from the
hedgehog
A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are seventeen species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introductio ...
character in
Beatrix Potter
Helen Beatrix Potter (, 28 July 186622 December 1943) was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' The Tale of Peter Rabbit'', which was ...
's story ''
The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle''.
It is based at
Haddenham, Buckinghamshire
Haddenham is a village and civil parish in west Buckinghamshire, England. It is about south-west of Aylesbury and north-east of Thame in neighbouring Oxfordshire. At the 2011 Census, the population of the civil parish was 4,502.
History
...
, where it operates an animal hospital and visitor centre, and teaches wild animal practice to
veterinary surgeon
Veterinary surgery is surgery performed on animals by veterinarians, whereby the procedures fall into three broad categories: orthopaedics (bones, joints, muscles), soft tissue surgery (skin, body cavities, cardiovascular system, GI/urogenital/ ...
s and veterinary nurses.
History
The animal welfare hospital takes its name from the character in the children's story ''
The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle'', by English writer and illustrator
Beatrix Potter
Helen Beatrix Potter (, 28 July 186622 December 1943) was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' The Tale of Peter Rabbit'', which was ...
.
In 1978, Les and Sue Stocker and their son Colin started caring for injured wild animals. In the following years, their activities began to attract attention and led to increasing numbers of animals being brought into their home. The Stockers formally registered The Wildlife Hospital Trust as a charity in 1983.
Les Stocker was the recipient of a
Rolex Award for Enterprise in 1990 for his work at the hospital.
In 1991, he was made a
Member of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
for services to wildlife. Les Stocker died on 16 July 2016, after a short illness, aged 73.
In 2018–9, Tiggywinkles had an annual expenditure of £1,618,673.
Cultural impact
Les Stocker wrote a popular account of his work at the hospital, ''Something in a Cardboard Box: Tales from a Wildlife Hospital'' (1989) and a number of books based on the work of the hospital, including a veterinary manual'', Practical Wildlife Care'' (2000).
Beginning in July 2008, Tiggywinkles was the setting for ''Wild Animal ER'', a 20-part, half-hour documentary TV series presented by
Kate Gerbeau
Kate Gerbeau (née Sanderson; born 9 August 1968 in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham) is an English television presenter and news reader, currently on ''British Forces News''.
Education
Gerbeau went to school in Formby and graduated from Bristo ...
, and shown on
Channel Five in the UK.
It was also featured in the first episode of ''
Come Outside'' called "Hedgehogs".
See also
*
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...
*
Wildlife rehabilitation
Wildlife rehabilitation is the treatment and care of injured, orphaned, or sick wild animals so that they can be released back to the wild.
Process
Rehabilitation begins when an animal is found and reported to a wildlife rehabilitator, or seize ...
References
External links
*
* {{EW charity, 286447, The Wildlife Hospital Trust
Profile of Les StockerA hospital for nonhumans
1983 establishments in the United Kingdom
Animal charities based in the United Kingdom
Animal welfare organisations based in the United Kingdom
Charities based in Buckinghamshire
Organizations established in 1983
Veterinary hospitals
Wildlife rehabilitation and conservation centers
Veterinary medicine in the United Kingdom