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Warning after Fife calf choked to death on helium balloon

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A Fife farmer has urged the public to think twice about releasing helium balloons and lanterns into the sky after a calf choked to death.

Kraig Kerr, who works at Barns Farm near Dalgety Bay, found the three-month-old with its mum in a field next to the remains of a plastic balloon on Monday.

The 32-year-old said the calf had likely caught the balloon from a nearby fence before chewing it and inhaling it, causing it to choke.

Local charity Animal Concern urged the Scottish government and local councils to ban sky lanterns and helium balloons from being released.

Speaking to BBC Scotland News, Kerr said: “I was just doing routine checks and I saw the calf lying down from afar with the ewe next to it, then I walked over and saw a crumpled up helium balloon next to its head.

“The body was clearly fresh – it had just happened that morning.

“It looked like (the balloon) had got stuck down their throat to the point where it couldn’t breathe.”

He added: “When a natural death occurs, it is tragic and it can be hard to move on from.

“But when it is something like this, that could have been prevented, it is heart-breaking.”


BBC News

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