AN OTTER pup found in Coggeshall High Street yesterday has been taken to a wildlife sanctuary.

The pup, around three months old and weighing just over a kilogram, has been named Splash by sanctuary volunteers.

It is thought the pup’s mother has been killed as offspring usually stay with their parents for a year before leaving the holt.

Rosie Catford, owner of the Wildlives Rescue Centre, in Thorrington, said: “This is the first otter we have had. Splash is cute, but also quite vicious and protective.

“She will be hard work to look after. She will stay with us until she is stronger and stabilised before going to a centre in the New Forest, where she will be raised by specialists.

“In a year, Splash will return to us to be released back into the wild. But we will have to provide an artificial holt and electric fence to allow her to be introduced gradually to otters in the area.’’