Wildlife and the Environment

Here at Piddle Valley Vets we think that maintaining the environment for future generations is of great importance. We make efforts to be as energy efficient as possible switch off lights and machines that are not in use and have had thermostatic valves placed on all radiators so the rooms are heated only as necessary. We have taken many steps towards having a paper-free office and try to communicate by text, e-mail, facebook and twitter rather than paper. It is, however, impossible to be completely paper-free so we also pay for a recycling collection from our surgery every 2 weeks. To protect your confidentiality we shred forms with sensitive data prior to recycling.

That is not all. We have installed bird feeders in the grounds of the surgery and are lucky enough to be visited regularly by blue tits, great tits, pied wagtails, house sparrows, hedge sparrows, blackbirds, among many more.

We have installed 2 Hedgehog houses under our hedgerows. These are surrounded by areas which are not regularly mown short, and one is adjacent to a large log pile. The photograph shows a hedgehog house kindly provided by Carl at www.carlssonart.com. It is made from cedar so should be long-lasting without the need for treatments which could harm the hedgehog.

All our soft garden waste is composted, and the compost bin can be seen in the photograph behind the bird feeders. This compost will be used on the gardens once it has matured.

We work closely with the East Dorset Bat Rescue and Rehabilitation (www.eastdorsetbatrehab.btck.co.uk/). This organisation works tirelessly to promote rescue and rehabilitate injured bats, as well as promoting awareness of their needs and habitats through talks to cubs, scouts, and other groups. We hope to install a bat box within the grounds of Piddle Valley in the near future and will ask assistance of the EDBRR when it comes to the most suitable site.