the sound of chattering came once again from the back property.
where, underneath the old retired RV sits, a mother raccoon has died,
leaving behind her babies.
A couple of days before I had found this little fellow and spent a good bit of time trying to locate a wildlife rehabilitator. One person told me to just let it loose in the woods............
it is such a tiny baby.......and look at those eyes...........how could I do that?
Instead, I placed him in a carrier and finally found a veterinarians office about 80 miles away who takes in all kinds of orphaned animals......including raccoons.
The first day one of the assistants me me half way and picked this small fellow up
but this morning, the office was short handed and we opted to drive these two to the shelter.
They had gone days without being fed
and were so desperate for a feeding that they chattered and sucked on my fingers , as they rode in my lap all the way to their new home. I can understand why people want to keep these little critters as pets. They are so lovable. But it takes 12 weeks of 4 hour around the clock feedings and a year of learning from their mother before they are ready to be on their own. .
It takes a rehabilitator this much time to get them prepared for the wild.
But I feel so lucky to have been able to hold and cuddle such wild creatures.
Another strange visitor that is not supposed to even live here was this squirrel. He showed up a few days ago and I hope predators do not get him.
The animal shelter that took in the baby coons had an amazing array of different animals.
All who had been abandoned by previous owners/
There were camels
a lonesome looking monkey
very friendly doves
a beautiful white turkey
and lots of horses........
this one I would have loved to take home!
There were also large lizards, crocodiles and snakes.
Meanwhile, inside.......baby Taboo is growing......
and longs to be able to go outside........
but for now........it is way too wild for such a small kitty.
17 comments:
So sad about the mama raccoon. You have such a kind heart to take the babies where they can be taken care of. I enjoyed your pictures in this post.
Those baby racoons are cute, but when they are teens and adults, they are a menace. I do not like them at all. :-)
I could see why you would want to take that beautiful horse home.
Have a great weekend ~ FlowerLady
An awesome rescue! The little babies are adorable......good job!! I really enjoyed these wonderful photos!
I understand sooo well!!! Round the clock care is tiring... Boris is a full time job, but he does run out to his favourite bathroom place in the bark garden, or under the hedge.This is huge progress that I'm so thankful for, but he needs 100% supervision when he is out, the trees, the stream bank all inviting and asking for trouble .Shelters like the one you went to, more than weight in gold for what they do for all the orphans.And thankfully you care so much, to capture them and travel with them. I'm sure the volunteers will look after them very well.
You have such a precious heart. Thank you for finding someone who would take these precious animals. Thanks for making that long drive with them. Not many would have done that. All of God's creatures are so special. I enjoyed all of your photos.
Lucky little fellows to have been found by someone with a kind heart. Many of the farmers around here dislike the racoons, but I am on the side of the adorable little rascals, and leave feed, scraps, etc., out for them down by the creek, and hope they stay away from people.
When I was a girl, my grandfather killed a raccoon that he found in the barn. Upon looking at it more closely he realized it must have babies and he searched until he found them, parceling them out to family members to raise. We got one of the babies and it was the sweetest little pet imaginable! Once they reach around a year old they universally get mean and wild and we released it. But we sure had fun with it until then!
What a beautiful post! I love stories where orphaned wild life are rescued by kind people such as yourself. Because of you, they are warm, fed, and have a future. God bless you!!
Awwww, this was so sweet that y'all found a rescue, Kathleen. Hopefully, they can be reintroduced into the wild someday. My grandmother had two baby raccoons when she was a teen. They were lots of fun til about a year old, and then they got mean. She had to turn them loose... I had a squirrel as a kid. He eventually left and found his own way. It's the way of wild animals I guess....
What a beautiful post, and how kind of you to take such care to get those babies where they have a chance at a good life.
Awe - the poor mama, and babies without her.
You are such a special person; I'd love to be
more like you. I wouldn't have a clue what to
do.
God bless.
I have known several people that fed raccoons, but they are wild animals and I just don't feel it's far to them. Glad you found a place to take them. What cute babies though. Sending you greetings from the UK.
Hugs,
Noreen
Oh those poor little coons. They are so lucky that you saved them. I will never understand why individuals feel the need to have wild or exotic animals as pets. My uncle was a park ranger and he always had some sort of wild creature that he was rehabilitating but as soon as they were healthy, he always released them.
I will send you all the squirrels you want! We have too many! But they are fun to watch. Even though I am not fond of grown up raccoons because of their attacks on my geese, those babies are adorable and I would have done the same thing. We are lucky to have Cornell University close by, which has a wildlife rehab, and I also tracked down a rehabilitator who lives about 10 miles from us. Her place is fun-deer, all kinds of birds and small animals are always being cared for by her. We've taken quite a few birds there, and I have called her for advice about a baby deer. Those people deserve a lot of credit for all the work they do...
They're all so cute.I'm an animal lover.I pass on this trait to my son whose ambition is to become a vet.
Oh Kathleen, the babies are so precious! What a wonderful thing that you found a shelter where they will be well cared for! They are just TOO cute! I know how happy you must have been to get to spend some time with them! The monkey about broke my heart! And I usually don;t care much for monkeys, but he looks so sad & lonely! People who take pets like that and then can't care for them, ought to be horse-whipped! I mean, CAMELS! Loved the pretty horse, as well...oh, I bet he/she was hard to leave behind! :-)
What wonderful photos, really nice looking animals.
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