'Barbaric torturers' bind hedgehog’s legs, remove spines and paint poor animal blue
The RSPCA has strongly condemned the attack, calling the incident "heartbreaking".
Vets had to make a tough decision to put a hedgehog to sleep and not to prolong his pain after the animal had been tortured in a "callous" incident.
The badly injured hedgehog had been found with his legs tied together by blue electrical tape while his long spines had been trimmed and cut down so they were very short. The animal had also been cruelly spray-painted bright blue.
After being spotted by a passer-by in the market town of Holt, in Norfolk, the animal was taken to a vet in Fakenham, where the practice called the RSPCA.
RSPCA inspector, Ben Kirby, said: "It was absolutely heartbreaking to see the state this poor hedgehog had been left in with his legs bound together by tape, and his spines trimmed right down."
He added: "He'd also been sprayed with blue paint, potentially so they'd be able to see him more clearly in the nearby hedgerow after they'd tortured him."
Mr Kirby called the incident a "premeditated attack" and the "most callous incident" he has had to deal with in his 16-year career as an officer.
The charity is now urging people in the area to check CCTV and video doorbell footage in the hope of identifying the people responsible.
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If anyone saw anything suspicious, in the area of Holt in recent days, they have been encouraged to call the RSPCA inspectorate appeal line on 0300 123 8018, and quote reference 01115237.
The discovery comes amid the RSPCA’s Cancel Out Cruelty campaign. An initiative that shines a light on deliberate cruelty against animals and raises funds to help frontline rescue teams save animals.
Mr Kirby added: "This shocking incident highlights the difficult work we do on the frontline every single day."