Dormouse saved after walking into tea shop

This sleepy dormouse was rescued after it wandered into a tea shop in Lyme Regis. He was scooped up by a visitor and taken to the Secret World Wildlife Rescue Centre, near Highbridge in Somerset, where he promptly went into hibernation.


Photo from SWNS.

Staff put the furry dormouse inside the shell of a coconut. The snoring mouse was woken briefly when famous author Sir Terry Pratchett visited the centre to launch a £4.4million Call of the Wild Appeal for a new animal hospital.

Charity founder Pauline Kidner said the animal occasionally woke briefly for a catkin snack before nodding off again. He will be returned to Lyme, a well-known dormouse habitat, in the spring.


Photo from SWNS.

Nocturnal dormice, part of the rodent family, are known for their long periods of hibernation. They usually measure between 6cm and 19cm and weigh between 15g and 200g.