Hereford Bat Rescue - UK

02/04/2026

04/05/2025

A few members of the group joined Herefordshire Bat Research Group for some box checks. As we predominantly get pipistrelles into care so it's a great opportunity to encounter our other bat species within the county which we look after less often. Thank you Denise for another fantastic day!

17/04/2025

We had an early Easter treat last Sunday. We are very lucky to have the highly experienced Erika on our team, who kindly spent the day teaching us about UK bat species and bat rehabilitation. Such a fab day and we all learnt so much. Whilst not all the team could make it, here's a group shot of some of the batty crew! 🦇

01/02/2025

Do bats like wine? Definitely not, but this little Soprano Pipistrelle did find itself in a wine glass within a box of donated goods to a charity shop in Herefordshire. Fortunately, with no hangover!

Luckily, the donor had left their details of where the goods came from. This is so important as bats need to be released back to their home location.

Caring staff from the shop got in contact with our bat ambulance driver Dave, who collected the bat and took it to carer Kate for an assessment, where she was found to be in good health. After a few nights of bed and board, she was fit enough to be released back to where she originally came from.

Bats should be hibernating over winter, so winter is usually a quiet time for the bat rescue team, but by coincidence earlier that week, we rescued another bat from the same area. With the weather being favourable, we were able to release the bats together. We hope that both bats will go back into hibernation now and stay safely tucked up until spring.

04/01/2025

We've been a bit quiet recently and taking a well earned rest like our bats. Whilst they may be hibernating, we had the lovely invite to speak with Vets for Pets Hereford for their latest podcast at The Vet With Pets about what we do as a bat rescue group. Have a listen and hope you enjoy it! 🦇

Better late than never! It's taken a while to get back on track but we hope you enjoy this fascinating interview with Rachel who started her journey with bats as a Bat Ambulance driver before progressing up to looking after sick and injured bats in Herefordshire and the surrounding areas. Rachel and...

22/07/2024

Just when you get your bat baby bunch weaned onto mealworms, we have this little one come in and we're back to milk feeding again!

This sweet girl was brought in to Arrowfield Vet Practice. This was the perfect opportunity to share our knowledge as to how we assess our bats that come into care. We are very lucky in Herefordshire to have some amazing veterinary practices wanting to help the wildlife that gets brought to them but it is not very often they get to handle bats. It was a pleasure showing one of their nurses how to safely handle a bat and how to do a body and wings check and the typical injuries they may encounter. This knowledge can now be passed on within the team to further support our bats and one another 🦇

21/07/2024

Teamwork makes the dream work!

04/07/2024

Released just in time to cast his vote! Gladiator was finally released after 7 weeks in care recovering from a nasty incident.

Gladiator came to use with his head and body completely glued to his forearm. We believe that some bitumen roof felt melted (when we actually had some warm weather!) and had got attached to him when leaving his roost. After a few oil baths in an attempt to free him, it became clear that this method was not going to work. Some of his fur had wrapped around his forearm, causing swelling and limiting his circulation. We had to somehow cut him free from himself. Not an easy job when the patient is the size of a mouse!

Conscious not to cut Gladiator himself, we finally managed to free him and he was instantly gracious and pleased to be able to move his head again. His forearm was raw and blistered from chemical or heat burns. He had also lost fur where we had to cut him out.

We have been so impressed with his cooperation throughout, waiting patiently and allowing us to free him and treat his injuries. His wounds healed and his fur grew back. And now he's back home again.

🦇 ❤️ 🦇

02/06/2024

How cool is this!

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/KSU3KwdkhFLPqtWK/

28/05/2024

Miss sassy bat Lizzy was released yesterday evening. Her finder took these funny photos of her protest and then the realisation that she was going home! She was reported flying over there garden again later in the evening 🤗

19/05/2024

Last week Angela released this little one who was found on the ground. He had some bruising to his arm but with some love and mealworms he was ready to get back out again!