19. January 2015 · Comments Off on Ode’r de Saturday Afternoon… or Free at Last! · Categories: Animal Stories

Ode’r de Saturday Afternoon…   or Free at Last!

By: Lila Travis

I received a knock on my door today.

The vibrant and warm sun was illuminating the most beautiful of greens in all the plants surrounding my Potrero Hill front door. I found a man there – a neighbor I had never met before. Feng. He was tall, with a kind face and a worried look. A skunk, he said, with it’s head stuck in a mouse trap. Would I come help? Of course! I grabbed a towel and my grumpy son, Devlin, threw on my shoes, and we hurried out the door to follow Feng up through the Open Space to the back yard of Starr King Elementary School.

Starr Kingfront__starr_king_school Elementary School is a harsh concrete and bsidewinder large_300x225rick building, softened by rows of evergreen hedges and flower boxes. There, behind the hedges, pressed against the concrete foundation, was a long bushy tail, glistening black with a limp white stripe down the middle. Body tensed with effort, the enormous female skunk was twisting and turning in the dirt. Her head disappearing into the entrance of a black box rodent bait trap. You know, those little black boxes the size of shoe-boxes seen left around public places that the kids always loudly ask about and we response in a whisper, “Ooo that’s poison – stay away from those!”.

She had burrowed out a deep trench in the soil under her body, in her desperate struggle to extract herself from the box, with no success. Each day her struggle causing her throat and head to swell more and more inside the sharp, unforgiving plastic, making her escape less and less possible until death freed her. Her flailing claws dug the trench underneath her deeper and deeper, revealing shrub roots that wrapped around her to complicate and confine her movements even further.

How did this happen? How did her head even fit in there? My mind flashed to the Yoplait yogurt container controversy from the 1970s. Yoplait yogurt containers are perfectly shaped for the shovel-shaped skunk head to fit in but not get out. Actually, when the Yoplait yogurt company was asked to change the shape of their containers to end the years of wildlife fatalities due to getting stuck inside their plastic tubs, they declined, stating that their unique shape set them apart from their competition and that consumers gravitated to their interestingly shaped yogurt cups, so they would not relent and alter their positive product identification packaging even if it was a hazard to animals. After 20 years of fatal skunk and other wildlife incidents, and public outcry, Yoplait finally agreed to add a printed warning to the cups urging consumers to “crush the cup” before discarding it. But the incidents of wildlife deaths from being trapped in Yoplait yogurt containers continue to rise even today, 37 years after their invention. (to help, you can sign this petition: https://www.change.org/p/for-35-years-yoplait-cups-have-been-killing-wildlife ) .
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Here it was playing out in front of me all over again. Why did this skunk put her head in this box of poison? Did she see a mouse run out of the box and, thinking there might be more mice inside, decided to go in for a closer look? (Skunks are natural rodent controllers by eating mice and rats) Thankfully, due to the design of the box, there was none of the poison within reach of her trapped nose and mouth, so I was hopeful that if she could be extracted, she could survive the experience unscathed, provided she had not ingested any poisoned mice, putting herself at risk for a secondary rodent poisoning death.

 

Throughout California, the use of poison baits stations to control rodents has resulted in the death of thousands of wild animals and pets each year. The targeted mouse or rat eats the poison from the trap, but the poison doesn’t kill them immediately. They have plenty of time to run around outside, eat more poison bait, get weakened from internal bleeding caused by the poison, and get caught by an owl, hawk, pet cat, or skunk, before they die. The unfortunate predator doesn’t realize they are eating a poisoned dinner and thus, the poisoning is passed along to untargeted victims. Using rodent bait is no different then leaving poisoned meatballs on the street for local pets and wildlife to find. http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Poisoned-meatballs-again-threaten-dogs-in-San-5259552.php  Secondary rodent poisoning does not discriminate between animals that are beautiful or endangered or hated or pesty or awe-inspiring. Since 1994, the California Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Wildlife Investigation Laboratory has tested and confirmed hundreds of cases of secondary wildlife poisoning from anticoagulant rodent baits, including: coyote, gray fox, red fox, San Joaquin kit fox (endangered), fishers (endangered), raccoons, squirrels, bobcats, mountain lions, black bears, kangaroo rats (endangered), bald eagles (endangered), golden eagles, Canada geese, great-horned owls, barn owls, red-shouldered hawks, red-tailed hawks, Cooper’s hawks, turkey vultures and wild turkeys. A much more effective rodent control program uses exclusion techniques (such as sealing rodent entrances to your home) and sanitation (removing rodent habitat such as ivy or wood piles) and animal removal, when necessary. Programs like the Hungry Owl Project ( http://www.hungryowl.org/ ) actually encourage owls to breed and populate areas where there are problems with mice, providing a natural rodent control that does not harm unintended victims, with the added bonus of occasional heart-stopping gasps of joy when a glimpse of the owls occur, and with no dangers posed to our friendly, long-suffering skunk lady in a ditch with a rodent bait box around her neck.

 

I had watched her struggle long enough. It was time to help. I was slightly alarmed that she was so large – I knew that once I touched her, my bath-sized towel would be little protection against her blind, terrified lashing out with the only defense mechanism available to her; her chemical gas cloud designed to swell mucosa and cause even the coldest individual to weep openly. I took one last breath of clean fresh air, then moved into position. Placing my towel around her body and tucking her tail up against her, with the hope that if she sprayed, it would be into the towel. I proceeded to begin the slow process of pulling her head bodily out of the hole in the black box of death. It didn’t help matters that the box had been, for ridiculously unnecessary security, chained to the concrete foundation of the building so I could only lift it up about 4 inches.

 

The big mama skunk’s struggle intensified as I methodically worked her swollen neck and head out of the tiny hole. There was no other option, since the plastic was so thick, even Feng’s knife was unable to cut it away. The skunk was terrified – not knowing if my intention was to eat her and not caring. She sprayed once, twice, I wrapped the stinky towel tighter around her and kept on working, my fingers staining yellow from the chemical reaction taking place in the towel. She uttered a few cries as her eye slowly came into view, then more cries as her swollen neck came free, and then her nose – she was out!

 

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I covered her with the rest of the towel and backed off, ignoring the burning rubber smell inside my nose, mouth and eyes. She sat there, her head peaking out at us from under the towel, as she realized she was free and able to go on her merry way once again. She took a few more minutes to recover, then loped off through the hedges towards the open space.

 

There she goes!” exclaimed Devlin happily, as she crossed the tiny alley and disappeared into the tall grasses of Starr King Open Space. I was pleased at her fast movements and apparently uninjured demeanor. She rushed across the sunlit field, back into her familiar territory of shadows and grubs and rotting stumps along the edge of the small park.

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Feng, Devlin, who was in a much better mood now, and I gathered up our equipment and headed back home across the Open Space, smiling to ourselves at the skunk’s elation at being free again. Before disappearing back into my home to drown myself in Baking Soda, Peroxide, and dawn detergent, I turned to the second hero in this story, after the brave skunk, and told him a simple truth, “ Most people wouldn’t have bothered. Thank you.”

 

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Excerpt From: The Chemistry of Skunk Spray from i09.com

The organic compounds that make skunk spray smell are also found in garlic and onions. They’re called thiols, and they’re very simple. Just hook one sulfur atom to one hydrogen atom.

The two leg-breakers in the family of chemicals that a skunk sprays are (E)-2-butene-1-thiol and 3-methyl-1-butanethiol. These are chains of carbon and hydrogen with the sulfur and hydrogen thiol group attached to one end. They’re volatile, which means they disperse easily in the air, and they’re easily picked up by the human nose. The back-up squad of skunk spray consists of thioacetates, other groupings of carbon and hydrogen that are, at first, not particularly smelly. When water hits them, it rearranges them into more potent configurations. A dog – or human – that’s been sprayed by a skunk will sometimes get smellier after being bathed in water. These compounds also linger, so when an area of a house that’s been sprayed by a skunk gets rained on, we get a delayed reminder never to make a skunk mad.

How to get the stench out? Tomato juice won’t do it. It’s just a strong smell that attempts to cover up the smell of skunk. What you need is a chemical that will change the composition of the thiol group. Fortunately, baking soda and hydrogen peroxide are will do the job. They are oxidizing agents, meaning they will attach oxygen atoms to the sulfur atom in the thiol pairing, and take away its ability to stink.”

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Recipe for Neutralizing Skunk Spray:

  • 1 quart of 3-percent hydrogen peroxide (available at your local pharmacy)
  • 1/4 cup baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon liquid dishwashing soap (DAWN works best)

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Did you know?

  • Skunks are extremely nearsighted and can only see clearing about 12 inches in front of them?
  • Once a skunk sprays they are defense-less for up to 2 days. They do not want to use their spray unless their lives depend on it so avoid startling a skunk into spraying by making noise and letting them know you are there. Remember they do not see well!
  • Skunks only spray for 2 reasons:  When they perceive their lives are threatened. OR  During mating season. (See Below)

From United States Humane Society Website:

“February through March is mating season for striped Skunks and that translates into “skunk smell.”

The stink occurs when males try to court females who may not be “in the mood.” When that happens, female skunks generate an aroma to repel their rejected suitors. Fortunately, skunk romance only lasts a short time.

Skunks are gentle, non-aggressive creatures who have wrongly earned a bad reputation because of that pungent odor. Their diet of grubs, insects, mice, and baby rats is actually beneficial, but skunks still go unappreciated.

As for being sprayed by a skunk, you may not realize just how difficult it is to get sprayed. When alarmed, skunks give a warning by stamping their front feet. If you take heed of that warning, they won’t spray.”

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For Solutions to Problems with Skunks, please visit: http://yuwr.org/faqs/skunk-problems/

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MOST PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE INTERNET, EXCEPT THE TWO OF ACTUAL SKUNK FROM STORY

29. July 2014 · Comments Off on Fledgling Hummingbird Flies Free · Categories: Animal Stories

In early June we were contacted by animal loving vet techs from Mission Pet Hospital. They had found a fledgling hummingbird in the street on a very windy day. There was no sign of the parents, so they got the baby bird to safety and gave us a call.

 

At this time of year, it is common for fledgling hummingbirds to jump out of the nest in their sink-or-swim efforts to learn to fly. It usually takes up to 5 days for these aspiring flyers to get the hang of it. During this time, the parents follow them around and continue to feed them, and, when possible, protect them from danger. However sometimes something will happen to the parent, or the fledgling will get into a situation where they are truly in danger that not even their parents can help them with. We once got in a fledgling who had been found in the middle of a busy intersection right in front of a freeway entrance. The passerby snatched the bird out of trouble and brought her to us. Another time, a girl watched with horror as a group of skateboarders nearly ran over the fledgling who was on the sidewalk under their boards. In most cases it is possible to move the bird out of danger but still keep them close enough that their parents can continue to care for them while they practice flying. However there are still some cases where it is better to bring them into care at your local wildlife rehabilitation center.

 

In the case of our little “Hummy”, he needed to be fed a sugar/insect protein nectar every 15 minutes during daylight hours. For the first few days he was hand-fed. Then he graduated to using a feeder. Within a day or so of this accomplishment, he was able to take short vertical flights. Huzzah!! However, normally the parent birds would be there to continue feeding the triumphant fledgling, and they would even guide the youngster around to show him how to feed himself. Now that “Hummy” could fly, we could not just let him go. He needed to be taught how to feed himself first.

 

“Hummy” graduated to a flight case that was enriched with $75 worth of Sloat Garden Center’s best hummingbird attracting plants, as well as a hummingbird feeder to supplement the natural nectar. After a few weeks in the outside enclosure, with frequent visits from the neighboring wild hummingbirds, “Hummy” was successfully catching flies, gnats, and other small insects, pollinating the many flowers in his enclosure, and even singing to the wild hummingbirds around him. He was ready to be free.

 

His release was one of those “don’t blink” types. He flew back and forth inside the enclosure a couple of times before breaching the open door and going straight up as high as he could go, to disappear into the sun-filled open sky. But that was not the last we saw of him. He had made friends here amongst the local hummingbirds and returned to the garden to fly with them and to taste the wild growing plants with their trumpet flowers waiting to be pollinated. We see “Hummy” now and then, sitting on a branch singing his heart out. We don’t often enjoy the ability to release on-site. It has been a true reminder of what our work is all about – getting these amazing co-habitators of our planet back out on their own so they can enjoy the wild life they were born to have.

 

Here are some photos of “Hummy” taken by Tara Whitefield:

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15. June 2010 · Comments Off on Tiny Tim’s Miracle! · Categories: Animal Stories

Although we are deeply involved in trying to SAVE OUR WILDLIFE CENTER from eviction (read more about it) we still want to share with you the daily miracles that are occurring at our wildlife center. Yes, we are still open and accepting animals daily despite our uncertain future. Please enjoy the unfolding tale of Tiny Tim.

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(all photos and video were provided by Jack Gescheidt, photographer, and Amy Pfaffman, Tim’s caregivers!)

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Tiny Tim had broken his back and both his rear legs were paralyzed. Because our job is to release the wildlife animals back into the wild, giving them a second chance, this was a very grave situation for this baby raccoon.  Paraplegic animals do not survive in the wild! Something had to be done.

Tiny Tim’s miracle began when he was brought into care with our own “Rancho Raccoon” team and, under the supervision of raccoon team leader, Megan Isadore, placed in the care of two very wonderful fosterers, Amy and Jack, who gave Tiny Tim the extra care he needed.

Here is a video of him at the beginning of his stay with Jack and Amy:

Tiny Tim’s plight caught the interest of Dr. Andrew Sams of The Sams Clinic, an orthopedic specialty vet practice in Mill Valley, who has donated consultations about our rehabilitation raccoons, and provided great veterinary guidance. The Sams Clinic has a neurosurgeon on staff, Dr. Lisa Klopp, who looked at the spinal x-ray and examined the 9-week-old raccoon. Dr. Klopp determined that the fracture would need to heal for a month, and agreed to perform a laminectomy to free the spinal cord from the compression causing his paralysis. Tiny Tim needed back surgery!!

During his month-long healing time before his surgery and after, Tiny Tim received physical therapy from Amy. Amy exercised Tim’s back legs several time a day, helping place them under him, supporting him minimally. Tim barely needed the help; he was determined to do everything a normal raccoon does. While Amy patiently placed his legs under him for walking, Timmy was on to leaping and climbing, never mind the falling. We were worried that he would further injure his spinal cord — but not Tim. He refused to be anything but what he is…a wild raccoon youngster. Amy’s therapy included roughhousing using a raccoon doll so he wouldn’t get too used to playing with humans.

About a week prior to surgery, we rescued a female raccoon a little younger than Tim. Her mother was hit by a car, and she was found crying by the body.

This little girl wanted no part of humans. She’s a normal 12-week-old raccoon who would rather do almost anything than cozy up to us scary monsters. But when we placed her with Tim, they bonded within hours. Tim was so happy to have a REAL raccoon to bite, and she was delighted to have someone of her own kind to cuddle with. And Tim’s human team was equally relieved Tim could learn from his own species.  This put an end to our concerns about Tiny Tim’s prolonged recovery and extended contact with human caregivers.

Finally the day for Tiny Tim’s surgery arrived. Although over the course of Tim’s month of healing he had recovered some use of both legs, he still needed the surgery to repair the damaged spine. Dr. Klopp, Tim’s neurosurgeon, said she’d never seen a smaller spinal cord. She had to perform delicate manipulation to get her instruments to work for a 3-pound raccoon kit!  Thanks to the hard work of Dr Klopp, plus two surgical assistants, and an anesthesiologist, the surgery went great!

Three hours post-surgery, Tim was up and about, and even PLAYING with his new sister! His caregivers watched him like hawks and made pen modifications to ensure he wouldn’t fall and jar his tender spine. Nevertheless, Tiny Tim and his sister had to be repeatedly constrained to allow Tim’s staples to stay intact over the following 10 days!  Thanks also to Amy’s daily physical therapy, we are seeing improvement in Tim’s abilities. Based on these improvement, and on our experience of raccoon healing, we predict Tim will be released as a normal, wild young raccoon.

Thank you to everyone who was involved in this amazing rescue! Thanks to Dr Sams Clinic, Dr Klopp and her surgical team, Jack and Amy, and Megan.

We will be posting a video of Tiny Tim post-surgery as soon as possible.  Thank you for your interest!

15. May 2010 · Comments Off on Spring Summary · Categories: Animal Stories

This year we have had more orphaned wildlife come in sooner than ever before.
We are frankly a bit intimidated. In May of 2009 we had a total of 113 patients. This year, we have 203 patients so far.

Luckily, we have some really great, reliable volunteers this year and are handling it in stride.
Thank you to the volunteers who come here daily to clean and cook for the animals.
Thank you also to the volunteers who have opened their hearts and homes to our orphaned babies, giving them both a family and a second chance at a normal life in the wild. Without our volunteers we would not be.

15. May 2010 · Comments Off on Deer Shot in Oakland – an inside story · Categories: Animal Stories, In The News

Coming Soon

04. January 2010 · Comments Off on 2009 – Wildlife Tales Summarized · Categories: Animal Stories

(this page is under construction – please bare with me)

In the 2009 we were able to successfully help 519 orphaned or injured wild animals. Although we cannot write about every animal who comes in, we intend to give you updates on the animals we did write about in our previous 2009 posts, before things got so busy that we ran out of time to update our blog. Thank you for your patience.

Thank you for your support and interest. We are 100% volunteer-run and donation-funded and without your support, we would have to stop doing this needed work. We hope you will continue to visit in the 2010 year, and perhaps consider becoming a volunteer or send us a donation so we may continue this work.

Raccoon Babies

These raccoon babies (from THIS POST) grew up happy and well under the care of Jack & Amy and Megan’s supervision. They were released and are living out their wild lives—but not before some photos were made of them.  Visit Jack’s website to see more photos and learn more of their story: http://raccoonery.com


These five little ones had a tragic start: their mother was killed by humans, an old-school “pest control” company.  These week-old orphans were left behind and Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue was called in.

We volunteer with YUWR’s Raccoon Team – Rancho Raccoon, as foster parents.  We feed and shelter them until autumn (2009) when they’re 7 months old and can survive on their own.  We release them back to the wild, near where they were found.

Soon, they had grown enough that their eyes opened and they became the curious explorers that they are. Jack &  Amy would take them on supervised outings in the woods for them to learn the sights and smells of their future wild life.

When they were old enough, they were released back into the wild. They live free now.


The Moses Family Squirrels

(from THIS POST)

Luci, Dean and their sons Milo and Felix raised Luke and Busta for us this year. In the end, once Luke and Busta were outside in their outdoor cage, 2 other foster babies were added to the mix, making a total of 4 babies in their care. Due to an unexpected birth defect, Luke did not make it to release. However, Busta and the other 2 babies, Florence and Bud, did. They were successfully released into their backyard where they roam free as they were meant to. Here are some photos:

When they first arrived these were tiny! But with proper care, they grew…

Soon they were old enough to graduate from a nursery kennel to a playcage!

Then, as the weeks passed and they continued to grow, it was time to make a pre-release cage for them in the backyard.

The cage was ready for them. They would stay in here for a month, then one day we would open the door and let them come and go. We continue to put food out for them for a while so they have help if they need it.

After release, on sunny afternoons, we were lucky to see our squirrels coming back for a rest and a visit…

…and sometimes for a treat too!

Good luck to you, our squirrel friends!

If you are interested in fostering baby squirrels, please give us a call at 510-547-9897. We will train you and supply many of the materials you need.

Tina’s Newborn Squirrels

(from THIS POST)

Theses squirrels were so young when they came into care with us, but thanks to the dedication of our volunteers – Lucy B. and Tina, they grew up and were successfully

Here is their photo story:

The Newborn Squirrels on Intake

After 2 weeks with Lucy B. they moved into Tina’s care

They grew well!

Eventually it was time to move them into their outside cage to prepare for release.

Look how BIG they’ve grown!

Now they are living Free, Wild Lives.

Thank you to Lucy B. and Tina for their hard work. And thank you to the caring family who found these little ones.

2009 Fawns (Coming Soon)

2009 Opossum Babies

Every year we get in hundreds of opossums who are injured or orphaned. This year we had a higher than normal number of mothers with babies in their pouches. The mothers had terrible injuries – the majority of them were either hit by car or attacked by a pet dog.

Opossums are north america’s only marsupial. That means that they are non-placental – that they are born as embryos and continue to develop inside their mother’s pouch.   They mate and 13 days later they are born. The embryos crawl up a hair-path that leads to their mother’s pouch. They climb in and attach to a nipple and stay there for a long time, growing and developing their eyes, fingers, and everything else.  When they are born, 22 of them can fit inside a teaspoon!

Here is a good picture of babies in a mother opossum’s pouch. This opossum was attacked by a pet dog. She recovered and was released shortly after this picture was taken:

When the babies are too big to all fit inside the pouch, they attach to mom’s back and go back into the pouch to nurse only.

In 2009, we received hundreds of opossums and many of these intakes included injured mothers with 8 or 10 babies in their pouches. I would like to highlight one story this year. That would be the tale of a mother opossum who was hit by a car. She was found by a good Samaritan who reported her apparently lifeless body to Oakland Animal Control when they saw the squirming of babies in her pouch. Animal Control found that she was still alive and brought her to the Montclair Veterinary Hospital where she was examined and it was discovered that she had a broken jaw as well as a skull fracture.  It is always a question – put them to sleep so they don’t suffer VS give them a chance to recover even if it is against the odds. In this case we decided we would manage her pain and let her recover and see how she did once her jaw was healed. We were concerned about brain damage from the skull fracture. This way, her babies would have a chance to grow up cared for by their mama.

The Mama did really well. Very soon her jaw was working again. She ate well and nursed her babies well. They grew and grew. They grew faster than she recovered and before she was ready to leave our infirmary, her babies were ready to go out on their own in one of our opossum pens.  By chance, the same day that her little ones went out into their new pen, another opossum mama was brought in with a pouch full of babies. This mother had been mauled by a pet dog and did not survive her injuries. We tried putting the dead mother’s babies in the current Mama’s recently emptied pouch – and it WORKED! She was still lactating. The babies latched on and Mama settled in as their new foster Mom.

Over the months that followed it soon became evident that the Mama did have severe brain damage and was also blind as a result of the impact of the car. As long as she was caring for little ones she seemed fine and focused, but as soon as we moved babies out and she was alone she would start walking in circles and showing real signs of brain damage. When the baby opossum season was over, The Mama had successfully fostered 27 baby opossums that were so small they would not have otherwise survived. However, with no new babies to put in her pouch, her condition soon deteriorated and her quality of life plummeted.  After discussing it with our daily volunteer staff, we all agreed that the best thing to do for the Mama was to let her rest peacefully. She had given a miraculous gift of life to all those otherwise doomed orphans.

I chose the Mama to write about here as one wild animal’s story which stood out in the 2009 year because  her tale filled us with amazement and inspiration. Her strength to live against terrible odds with the sole purpose of loving not just her young – but any young in need.

Thank you to the Mama, for all her caring work this year.

25. March 2009 · Comments Off on Wow! · Categories: Animal Stories, Events

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This is one of the 5 babies brought in to our wildlife center earlier this month. Check out our Raccoon Team,  Rancho Raccoon to read more about their progress as they grow!

24. March 2009 · Comments Off on A Perfect Ending · Categories: Animal Stories

This last sunday at the Temescal Farmer’s Market, in the middle of the hustle and bustle, a squirrel’s nest fell. The nest of leaves landed on the ground amidst passing shoppers, stomping feet, and curious children and dogs. One of the vendors was on it, though. She heard the crying baby, saw the frantic mother run away in a panic. She had the presence of mind to protect the nest and call our wildlife center for advice.

We told her that the best thing to do would be to get the mother to reunite with her baby(s) but that it was unlikely to happen in the middle of the farmer’s market. The vendor was willing to stay late after the fair was over to try to reunite this baby with it’s mother so we asked her to protect the nest until the market ended and things quieted down. She put the nest in a boxand kept it safe until the market closed.  Luckily we also had a volunteer willing to run down there and help. Margaret met the vendor after the farmer’s market ended and when it was quiet again, together they took the nest with the baby in it to the base of the tree he had fallen out of.  We told them to expose the baby slightly to the elements so he would cry in discomfort from the sudden change in temperature and then back away from the nest, watching from a distance to make sure the nest was left alone by passing people and animals.

They did not have to wait long. The squirrel baby let out a loud “Eeeep! Eeeep! Eeeep! ” and from hidden in the branches, the frantic mother made her way down the tree, grabbed her baby like a mother cat would a kitten, and carried him back up into the tree’s protective branches to her new nest.

Well Done to the Farmer’s Market Vendor, assisted by our volunteer Margaret!

This is the perfect ending we wish for all the wildlife emergencies. The vendor did everything right.

Unfortunately, not all wildlife emergencies end this way.  Most end with the babies being brought into care at our facility.  Reuniting is the best way to go, but it does require dedication of time and care from the finder as well as our volunteers.

If you see a nest fall, or a baby animal in trouble, give us a call and we can talk you through how to reunite a baby with it’s mother, if possible. If not, we will always be here to give loving care to wildlife orphans.  (510) 421-9897

20. March 2009 · Comments Off on Great Photo! · Categories: Animal Stories

These are the two older squirrels in care with the Moses Family –  Lucie, Dean, Felix and Milo.

They are doing great!

Keep up the good work – and keep the great photos coming!!!

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Photo by the Moses Family

18. March 2009 · Comments Off on Remember those newborn squirrels from February 23rd? · Categories: Animal Stories

The babies from THIS post?

Well here they are!

Lucy B. took really excellent care of them, round the clock, taking them from critical to stable condition.

And boy have they grown!

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They are now in foster care with Tina, where she will care for them until they are all grown and ready for release!

Good Work Ladies!!

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