Express & Star

Large crab abandoned in alley outside Boots store

CCTV from the shop in York showed the crustacean being dumped by two young men the previous afternoon.

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The abandoned crab

Staff at a branch of Boots were shell-shocked to find a large crab abandoned in an alley outside the store.

The crustacean was reported to the RSPCA by staff at the shop in Coney Street on Monday lunchtime.

The store’s CCTV showed the crab being dumped by two young men the previous afternoon.

Inspector Thomas Hutton said: “This poor thing must have been feeling crabby after being dumped in an alley in the middle of York – a long way from his natural habitat.

“They (officers) managed to catch him before confining him in a bowl with some water.”

He added: “It’s extremely irresponsible to leave this crab in this way. It’s an extremely dangerous setting for an animal that is used to living his life on the beaches and rocks and in the sea.

“He could have easily been seriously injured or killed.”

Animal collection officer Martin Whiteley took the crab to SeaLife Centre in Scarborough, where it is now being cared for.

It is not clear where the crab came from before it was abandoned in the alley in York.

The RSPCA, along with other animal welfare charities, is calling for a Bill enshrining animal sentience law to include decapod crustaceans, such as crabs and lobsters, and cephalopods, such as octopuses, cuttlefish and squid.

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