By Chris Hooper

THE gruesome discovery of a box of dead guinea pigs last week was the latest in a series of pet-dumpings dealt with by Salisbury Wildlife Rescue service.

After a call from a concerned member of the public, officers from Salisbury Wildlife Rescue attended a spot known locally as Stinkpot Alley, off Devizes Road in Salisbury.

What they found there was shocking, even for seasoned members of the Wildlife Rescue team.

Wildlife Rescue's, Phil Groombridge said: "There was a cardboard box similar to those used to contain packets of crisps, and inside there were six dead baby guinea pigs.

"I can only imagine someone somewhere has a pair of guinea pigs who have mated and given birth to a litter, and that person did not want the responsibility of looking after all the new-borns.

"But just dumping them in an alleyway was a heartless thing to do because those little things wouldn't have stood a chance now the weather is getting colder and wetter."

"Unfortunately, this discovery seems to reflect a growing trend in Salisbury of people dumping their unwanted pets rather than taking care of them properly." Mr Groombridge added: "We seem to have had a lot of pet-dumpings lately, everything from mice to birds and even pet snakes, all of them just dumped when people didn't want them anymore."

"It is such a shame because organisations like Blue Cross or Petsearch will take in unwanted pets so there is no need for this sort of thing to happen.

"All people need to do is call us and we can pass on the details of these organisations." For more information on pet adoption services see: www.bluecross.org.uk or www.petsearch.org.uk; or call Salisbury Wildlife Rescue service on: 07986 514666.