Fairytale ending for abandoned cockerels

The animal welfare charity was called by a woman on Sunday afternoon (23 April) who discovered the birds dumped in a cardboard box in an area of woodland in Surrey.

Inspector Andrew Kirby went to Honeysuckle Bottom in East Horsley, Leatherhead, to collect the cockerels.

“We believe the birds were dumped in the cardboard box found nearby but by the time I arrived they’d managed to clamber out of the box,” he explained.

“Some of the local residents had attempted to catch the birds but had no luck so they called us.

“They had been abandoned in an area of dense woodland so they were lucky to have been found, although their crowing may have eventually drawn attention to their plight.”

Inspector Kirby collected the birds - seven brown and one white - and took them to private boarding nearby where they will now be cared for. They’ve been named after Snow White and the seven dwarves.

“We’ve named the one white cockerel Snow and his seven brown friends have been nicknamed after the seven dwarves so we have: Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy and Sneezy!” inspector Kirby added.

“They’ll stay in boarding while we continue our investigations and, when possible, we’ll start searching for new homes for them.

“Anyone who owns animals is responsible for their well being and to abandon eight birds in the middle of nowhere is unbelievably irresponsible.

“We’re following up a number of leads but would also appeal to any members of the public with any information about where these cockerels came from or who may have dumped them to contact us by calling our appeal line on 0300 123 8018.”

Cockerels can be difficult for the RSPCA to rehome as any new owners will need understanding neighbours who don’t mind the noise of cockerels crowing.

Before deciding to keep chickens it’s important to consider if you have the knowledge, time, facilities, money and commitment needed to care for them.