CARDIGAN police community support officer Matt Kieboom certainly had his hands full after rescuing an injured buzzard.

The bird of prey had been hit by a car so Matt gathered it up and took it to Priory Vets in the town for a check-up and then to Pant Glas World of Nature where falconer Janet Barber gave it another once over before it was released safe and well back into the wild and flew off.

“The bird was fine. It had been clipped by a car and was just stunned and often 24 hours in a box to recover does the trick,” said Janet.

“He was an old male bird and was moulting and looked a bit bedraggled but other than that, he was fine and healthy. He was lucky as usually if a bird is struck by a car or is even caught in the disturbed air, it will kill it.”

Janet admits she gets called out to all sorts of birds, including a ‘black falcon’ which turned out to be a swift, whereas on another occasion she was called in to deal with what was described as a ‘fairly large bird’ and was in fact an escaped eagle.

If you find an injured bird of prey, Janet advises you cover it with a jacket or towel before seeking veterinary help but be wary of the talons.