Select a region
Can you think of festive names for the two baby pigeons that JSPCA staff are spending this Christmas hand-rearing?
At the end of every year, Express speaks to local charities about what their Christmas wishes are for the year ahead.
Today, we spoke to the JSPCA – and the charity also asked readers to name two tiny pigeons or "squabs" recently rescued from a building site.
Pictured: The two baby pigeons are looking for festive names.
Head of wildlife Billy Mullacky explained: “These are two baby pigeons and are called 'squabs' initially. They were brought into the shelter by a worker on a building site and were roughly two days old.
"This name will be given to them for around 30 days when they will become 'squeakers' due to the sound the make up to about seven weeks old. After this they are known as 'youngsters'.
"They are hand reared by the staff 24/7 until they are old enough to eat on their own, when they will be released to our onsite aviary with the older pigeons to learn the right pigeon habits."
The charity would normally only name domestic animals, not wildlife – but this time they are asking readers to think of their best festive names and email them to fundraising@jspca.org.je in the coming days.
Billy has been put in charge of picking the winning names.
The animal charity also shared its reflections and hopes for the new year...
The JSPCA is delighted to be able to support the BDMLR in welcoming seals to the charity for the first time. This provides a critical bridging service to the charity whilst the GSPCA complete their new wildlife centre. We would like to thank the GSPCA for all their support over the last few years on this important service.
The JSPCA is also proud to have cared for so many aged, sick, lost and unwanted animals of Jersey in 2024 and is looking forward to continuing this important work in 2025.
Pictured: Tom Noel took over as interim CEO of the JSPCA last month.
Recently we welcomed two baby pigeons to the shelter and the wildlife team will be busy over the Christmas period hand rearing them to be released in the new year.
In addition, we have welcomed the new Interim CEO here at the Charity. Tom Noel joined us in November and is focusing on creating an open and welcoming charity building partnerships with all animal welfare charities across the island.
Fundraising for any charity has been tough in 2024 with the cost of living crisis. Increasing our membership numbers and recurring revenue streams in 2025 will be a key focus.
We also have a lot of investment needed in our property estate which is showing signs of its age and lack of investment.
Ensuring all our premises are fit for the animals in our care and the dedicated people that work here is a key priority for 2025, building on the hard work of 2024.
The JSPCA’s mission is to prevent cruelty, promote knowledge and provide for the aged, sick, lost and unwanted animals of Jersey.
The JSPCA has done well in the last part of this mission, but in 2025 our focus is to increase our ability to prevent cruelty and promote knowledge.
The JSPCA will open its doors to be a welcoming and inclusive charity and is keen to partner with all animal welfare charities, professionals and volunteers in the island.
In early 2025, the JSPCA will hold a Strategy open day where we will talk about our priorities for 2025 and welcome thoughts and perspectives that might shape it and how we can support other charities in this space.
The JSPCA will also be focusing on some key property developments at the shelter with exciting developments planned to start in the new year.
Finally, the JSPCA will be looking to recruit a passionate and inclusive new CEO to take the charity forward and be the face of the charity with all of our stakeholders, this recruitment will start early in the new year.
On behalf of the JSPCA, I would like to wish all our loyal employees, volunteers and supporters a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year.
To submit your names for the baby pigeons, email fundraising@jspca.org.je and the JSPCA team will pick the winners.
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.