Four males have been arrested after a hedgehog was painted in the colours of Leeds United. West Yorkshire Police's Wildlife and Rural Crime team said they detained four males aged 44, 21, 17 and 15 on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal contrary to Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Hedgehog Found in Yeadon
The arrests came after a woman found an adult female hedgehog at her home in Yeadon, Leeds, West Yorkshire, on July 13. The animal appeared to have been daubed in Leeds United's yellow and blue, or as Sonic the Hedgehog. The paint meant the prickly mammal was unable to curl up into a ball and was left with breathing problems due to fumes from the paint.
Rescue and Treatment
Staff at Prickly Pigs Hedgehog Rescue in Otley took in the animal, scrubbing the oil-based paint from each individual spine and administering pain relief. Diane Cook, 51, who owns the rescue shelter, said whether football-related or not, the actions were "absolutely appalling". She said because the creature had restricted movement, it had no way of defending itself from predators and could have easily been killed or slowly starved to death.
Diane, who runs the shelter from her converted garage, said the paint was so "thick and tough it had 'glued' her spines together". She also said the paint was similar to emulsion used for decorating or even road marking.
Hedgehog Decline
Hedgehogs are in decline in Britain and are now listed as "vulnerable" on Britain's red list of mammals. According to the latest State of Britain's hedgehogs report, numbers have fallen by up to 30% in urban areas and 50% in rural areas since the turn of the century.
Police Investigation
West Yorkshire Police said all four males were bailed as further enquiries take place. A spokesperson for the force said: "Four arrests have been made after a hedgehog was sprayed blue in the Yeadon area, Leeds. Over the weekend four men aged, 44, 21, 17 and 15 were arrested on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal contrary to Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. All four have been bailed for further enquires to take place."
Anyone with information should call 101 or use the Live Chat option on the force's website quoting reference 13260401913. Information can also be given anonymously to the independent Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.
