Four animal lovers and activists, Marius van Reeuwyk, Dr Armand de Clerq, Tanja Ackerman, and Shayne van der Heever, started Secunda Wildlife Rescue.

The aim of this initiative is to rescue wild animals, rehabilitate them, and then release them back into the wild.

They noticed a lot of owls, falcons, and other wildlife were getting injured over the past year, and they would rescue them and take them to the Birds of Prey Rehabilitation Centre in Dullstroom.

Although the four still work closely with Birds of Prey, they want to release wild animals in the Highveld area where they were found.

Secunda Wildlife Rescue is authorised to work under the Mpumalanga Parks and Tourism Department. Apart from rescuing and releasing animals, they also want to educate the community.

Van Reeuwyk is the director and chief inspector of the South African Animal Welfare Inspectorate Association (Saawia), De Clerq is a falconer and volunteer to help animals, Ackerman rehabilitates the animals and keeps them safe and Van der Heever is an experienced snake catcher and volunteer when it comes to animal welfare.

Van Reeuwyk urged the community to report people who are keeping wild animals. To donate or support this initiative, contact Van Reeuwyk at 067 858 9719. Follow Secunda Wildlife Rescue on Facebook.