Injured swan's feet treated with honey after being given police escort through village

Concerned officers gave a swan a police escort through a Northamptonshire village after noticing the injured bird waddling through the streets. The swan was spotted on the main road in Little Billing at about 12:00pm on Monday.



Officers called an animal rescue charity and followed the bird to keep it safe from traffic while waiting. The bird's feet were later treated with honey before it was released near the River Nene.

Roy Marriott, from Wellingborough-based Animals in Need, said staff from the charity kept the swan in overnight to ascertain its injuries. "We gave it antibiotics for an injured wing and treated its grazed feet with manuka honey.



"It's likely the bird was confused by the sun shining brightly on puddles in the road and thought it was coming in to land on water," he said. The three-year-old male swan was released "safe and well" on an embankment near the river.