The RSPCA is set to mark its 200th birthday amid its busiest week of the year - with the charity using its landmark anniversary to issue a rallying call to the people of Cheshire to join a million-strong movement for animals.

Last year, across England and Wales, the charity took an astonishing 31,947 calls to its emergency line during its birthday week (12-18 June) - more than any other week of the entire year.

The charity's rescuers also dealt with 5,573 incidents in that week alone - with its dedicated frontline teams responding to countless pets, wild and other animals subjected to cruelty, neglect and mistreatment.

Some 85 of the incidents that week were in Cheshire, with the charity dealing with a total of 5,470 separate incidents across the county throughout 2023.

Animal rescuers are now braced for another busy period this year - as they prepare to celebrate 200 years of the RSPCA working with the public to change animals' lives for the better.

It has already been incredibly busy for RSPCA officers throughout their 200th year - with 330,415 calls from across England and Wales received by the charity's emergency line (up to 27 May) even before the busiest summer months begin; and rescuers dealing with a whopping 116,512 incidents of concern.

Earlier this year, a buzzard who was grounded on the M6 in Cheshire for several hours after being hit by a vehicle was successfully released back into the wild after five weeks of rehabilitation.

The female bird of prey was first spotted by motorists on the northbound carriageway near Knutsford Services and initially reported to the Highways Agency.

She was caught by Animal Rescue Officer Helen Chapman just before Christmas after police temporarily halted the traffic.

The stunned bird was grounded by a wall next to the central reservation and is thought to have been clipped by a vehicle.  

She was re-released by Helen in January after more than five weeks in the care of Wild Wings Birds of Prey, a specialist rescue and conservation centre at Risley in Warrington.

Now the charity is urging people to join its million-strong movement with animals facing "some of the biggest threats in our history" - including the cost of living crisis, the growth of intensive farming and climate change.

RSPCA Chief Executive Chris Sherwood said: "Our dedicated rescue teams are so busy on the frontline for animals, and - as we celebrate our landmark 200th anniversary this week - we're expecting to be as busy as ever.

"Our birthday week was the busiest week of the whole year last year - and we're proud that, working with the public, we're continuing to help animals in Cheshire and across the country.

"But we know we can't do this alone - and the support of our friends in the animal welfare sector, and the public, is set to be more important than ever as we all look to work together to create a kinder, better world for all animals.

"To keep creating a better world for every animal, we need more people to take action. That's why, in our 200th year, we want one million people to join our movement - and to share in our vision for every kind."

Sunday (16 June) marks two centuries since the animal welfare organisation - then the SPCA - was founded at Old Slaughter's Coffee House in London, by a London vicar, Arthur Broome, and 22 founding members, including the MPs William Wilberforce and Richard Martin.

By 1840, Queen Victoria had given permission for the Society to add 'Royal' to its name - and this Royal link was recently maintained with HRH King Charles III confirmed as the charity's new patron.

In the 200 years since its formation, the RSPCA has worked to change industries, laws, minds, and animals' lives - and believes working with the public, and education, will be key with animals now facing a raft of new challenges.

The charity has launched a new tool on its website to help people understand how they can help an animal in need as quickly as possible.

Chris added: "We're so proud that - in so many ways - animals' lives have changed beyond recognition over the last two centuries.

"But we know animals are now facing some of the biggest threats in our history, from climate change to intensive farming, the cost of living and the ongoing effects of the pandemic.