Mr Dobbs, of Newstead Close, Eye Green, near Peterborough, was so upset when he returned home on Sunday evening to find his beloved birds were gone, he could not bare to call police.

Instead, he asked a friend to tell officers how his aviary had been broken into through the wire mesh, leaving no trace of his birds, a collection of canaries and finches, which had been stolen or had flown away.

All the callous crooks left in the aviary were two chicks, which Mr Dobbs (63) now looks after himself using a pair of small tweezers to feed them titbits in the absence of their mother.

Today, Mr Dobbs, a city councillor for the Eye and Thorney ward, said: "They just ransacked the whole place and there were between 25 and 35 birds in there.

"They've also taken a quail and all of her eggs, there must have been 20 eggs.

"There isn't a set value for the birds, but if they are sold for £10 a bird then that's still £350.

"I can understand now how people feel when they have been burgled, it's devastating. I used to spend quite a lot of time just looking at them and listening, because they sing fantastically.

"While the police were there, we saw two babies in their nest so I'm feeding them with eye tweezers. They've only got to be about 10 to 15 days old."

The incident has left Mr Dobbs, who has kept birds for seven years, feeling like he won't keep birds again, as the trust he had built up with them, he says, would take too long to do again.

Scenes of crime officers were sent to Mr Dobbs' home in the aftermath of the incident to sift through the debris, which may determine what happened to the birds.

Police are also appealing for witnesses to the incident, which is currently being classed as criminal damage until it is known whether the birds were stolen or flew away.

Anyone with any information regarding the incident should call police on 0345 456 4564 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.