Rosslare residents have been left baffled in recent days by the appearance of an unusual visitor, who has been spotted running through gardens and even wandering around the Supervalu carpark.
Speculation as to what the visitor could be had locals arguing on social media – with some suggesting it was a mink or a pine marten.
It wasn’t until Mike Bennet encountered the creature on the beach yesterday and sent photos to a wildlife charity in Kildare – who confirmed that the mystery guest is in fact an otter.
The charity have advised to leave the otter alone as he should be able to find his way back home, alternatively he can be lured into a secure shed – it is advised not to attempt to catch him by hand.
Mike Bennet took to his social media yesterday afternoon:
“Otter update. I encountered it this afternoon on the beach. It’s definitely an otter. It came up to me and nipped at my boots. I took pics and sent them to Kildare Wildlife Rescue, who specialise in otters.”
Kildare Wildlife Rescue gave this reply:
“What a gorgeous little one! In these instances of otters in weird places, we would advise people not to feed him as this will encourage him to hang around somewhere frequented by dogs etc.
If he is healthy, he should be able to find his way back home. A healthy otter is almost impossible to catch by hand. We would not recommend anyone try this without extensive wildlife experience
If you hear further reports of him being back on the housing estate, if someone is able to lure him into a secure shed or garage by popping some food and water in the back, the door could be locked behind him and they could then get in touch with us to see if we can help further.
If you see him again, it would be great to be able to see some good quality video footage so we can assess if he seems to have any health issues”.
So if you get video of it, or even catch it in your shed, please contact Kim at: info@kwr.ie and they will get back to you straight away.
We would also love to see any further pics of the local otter, please send updates to ajwalsh@southeastradio.ie
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