The problem of wild animals entering private properties arises from time to time, while officials have been unable to implement a procedure for helping residents in such situations around the clock, seven days a week. It is possible that teaching wild animals the days of the week and that they are not allowed to enter cities and properties on Saturday evenings and Sundays would be quicker than persuading offices to provide help on a day off.
Our reader wrote to us on Sunday at 4:11 p.m.
An injured marten is lying under my car in my yard. There are no services to deal with it; I wanted to help it, but it bit me and I have to go to the emergency department. We have been waiting for the police for more than two hours. It is unimaginable how much this animal must be suffering, with help unavailable anywhere. I do not know whether it infected me with rabies, because the veterinarian from Nowogrodziec who has a contract with the Municipal Police is not answering.
At around 6:30 p.m., we gave the reader the telephone number for the Bolesławiec District Crisis Management Centre (PCZK), but it was not until 9:00 p.m. that the duty officer sent a veterinarian to the woman. The injured animal was no longer there. The bitten woman must report to the hospital for the first four rounds of rabies vaccinations.
We should add that the PCZK does not deal with removing small animals from properties, and the police should have provided the woman with information about whom to contact in this situation. According to the reader, the police did not do so, but we are awaiting the police’s comment.
Animal Helper app, or 112 for animals
In the Pomeranian Voivodeship, a pilot version of 112 for animals has recently been operating: an app called AnimalHelper. Animal Helper is an application intended to save animals’ lives and health. It not only shortens the response time of services when a life is at risk, but also helps build an animal-friendly society that is aware of and sensitive to harm inflicted on defenseless four-legged animals.
The app was created after nearly four years of work by the team from the Psia Krew Foundation and programmers from BinarApps and lsn. Users have received an application available in both web and mobile versions for Android and iOS. Reports reach a central office that operates around the clock, seven days a week.
Perhaps it would be worth investing in such a system in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship.
Who should be notified?
If you feel threatened, notify the Bolesławiec District Crisis Management Centre (tel. 75 735 18 50, 51; 24-hour tel.: +48 533 900 112), the Municipal Police (tel. 75 644 79 90, mobile tel. 505 186 457), the Bolesławiec City Office (during office hours, tel. 75 645 65 04), or the municipal office of the area where you live, also during office hours.
In urgent road incidents involving animals, notify the Police or Fire Service (outside the hours and days off of the Bolesławiec Municipal Police), which will contact the appropriate veterinary clinic.
If you are bitten by a wild animal, report the incident to the State Sanitary Inspection (tel. 75 732 3246 to 47) and the District Veterinary Inspectorate (tel. 75 730 10 86).
A wild animal: what should you do?
Wild animals such as foxes, wild boar, roe deer and moose are increasingly being seen on the outskirts of large cities, and sometimes even in their very centers. They prefer undeveloped areas with bushes, thickets and sparsely forested edges of housing estates. This is the result of urbanization of areas previously inhabited by animals and easy access to food.
If you witness a wild animal appearing in the city, take a photograph. Remember that you can pass this information on to the Municipal Police anonymously. The services should respond, because wild animals in cities generally pose a threat to road traffic and pedestrians.
Rules for dealing with wild animals:
- remain calm and keep a safe distance from the animal
- do not feed it
- do not touch it
- do not frighten or scare it away
- do not set a dog on it
- do not shout