RSPCA inspector sent to model village after call expressing welfare concerns about mating frogs

Fears for the welfare of frogs at a pond at a model village prompted a visit from an RSCPA inspector - only to find the animals were mating.



A visitor to Merrivale Model Village in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, contacted the charity after seeing dozens of frogs "climbing on top of each other" in an apparent bid to flee the pond. But the inspector found "no welfare issues" when he visited the site.

The frogs "were simply expressing natural behaviour", the charity said. Peter Williamson, who owns the model village, said there had been "over 100 pairs of cuddling frogs" in the pond and the site had "never seen so much frogspawn". "The first I knew was when the red-faced RSPCA man came to us," he said.



"This poor chap had to describe to me how the member of the public thought the frogs were climbing on top of each other to escape the pond. He said, 'I'm sorry, I had to come and have a look, but actually it was the pairs of frogs getting friendly'." Mr Williamson said the model village was a "haven for wildlife on the seafront", and he was always happy to address visitors' concerns