Three Animal Tales by Wild Baby Rescue… our November COTM

Three Animal Tales

by Wild Baby Rescue
our November COTM

nominated by Rebecca of MsBekkahsCorner

Text & Photos courtesy of WBRC

Hagrid the Raccoon
A Gentle Giant

A gentle giant arrived at Wild Baby Rescue Center during Thanksgiving week. He is a raccoon, who at six months old weighs 24.6 pounds, more than double the normal weight of a raccoon his age and clearly has no idea that he is a raccoon. He was kept as a pet. He was fed bags of candy corn and other sweets. He slept in a bed. He was treated like the cat and dog he lived with. He was spoiled with human attention until he grew too big to control and then he was no longer wanted.

Now this gentle giant must become a raccoon. The transition will be sad and difficult for him. His name was Rocky, but in honor of his new life we will call him Hagrid (of the Harry Potter fame).

The first order of business will be to get him on a natural healthy diet and to reduce his weight with exercise. He will spend the winter in a large enclosure in the barn with a bed of hay and lots of tree limbs to climb on. We will also create diversions to keep him from becoming bored and keep him active. Paper towel tubes, cut in pieces and stuffed with natural treats (grapes, banana slices, acorns and dried apricots) will give his hands, and taste buds something new to experience. Rubbing those tubes with spices (mint, cinnamon and allspice) will keep his nose interested and increase his experience with different scents. Pinecones, fur tree branches, and dried corn in husks will add to his wild schooling. One and a half years later, this Gentle Giant was released wild and free.

There is no greater disservice one can inflict on a wild animal than to keep it as a pet. The greatest gift you can give a wild animal is its freedom.

Snickers' Story

Many times well intentioned people find an orphaned wild baby animal and raise it in their homes. More often than not they get attached to the animal and decide to keep it as a pet. Unfortunately, most wildlife are not fed the correct diet and become destructive and dangerous when kept in captive, home environments. That was Snickers the Groundhog's story.

Snickers came to Wild Baby Rescue Center after the family who had her moved to Arizona. She had eaten the woodwork and destroyed the floors. Snickers had been fed cat chow, instead of the greens, fruit and grains that her species needs to grow healthy and strong. She was enormous. Her teeth were overgrown and so were her nails. She had never had the opportunity to dig and tunnel, play in the fresh air, or munch on tasty dandelions.

The weather was warm so she was put in our outside Groundhog enclosure. She immediately got into our digging box and dug her first tunnel. A student at Centenary College made a large enclosed box filled with dirt as enrichment for our Groundhogs.

Snickers was weaned off of cat chow in favor of Romaine lettuce, carrots, corn on the cob, dandelion leaves, strawberries, peanuts and apples. After two months of rehab and a bit of weight loss, Snickers was released and free to enjoy her wild life.

Flower the Eastern Cottontail
Flower Power!

Flower came to Wild Baby Rescue when she was found lying in the snow in early March. She was about three days old. She was warmed and then fed a rehydration formula. She had a small puncture wound that was probably made by a cat. Taking no chances the wound was cleansed and she was started on an antibiotic.

She was given formula three times daily and seven days later she opened her eyes. Leafy greens, apple and pear was added to her diet and at twelve days old she was weaned off her formula and eating lots of solid food. By the time she was three weeks old she was eating a head of red leaf lettuce, ¼ of a pear and ¼ of an apple each day.

She was released at six weeks old to a place where she will have plenty of green grass and clover and hopefully live a long, good life and have many baby bunnies of her own.

Each of WBRC's wildlife patients requires a specialized diet. Injured wildlife often need veterinary care and medication. Food and medical care account for our biggest expenses by far. A donation to Wild Baby Rescue will help cover these important costs. 100% of every donation goes towards animal care. Relying on the kindness of volunteers, we do not employ a staff.

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