Me feeding a juvenile raccoon
This will be a slightly less wordless Wednesday. Over the weekend I took a class in basic wildlife rehabilitation. It was an amazing experience. I’m so glad I got the chance to learn as much as I did. I’m looking forward to learning more, and helping out our native wildlife! This little guy kept trying to back over my shoulder and suckle at the same time! He was teething so he was a little distracted.
Disclaimer: All wildlife was in the care of a permitted rehabilitator. The animals were brought to class for education purposes only. All interactions were done under supervision.
Very cool! What did Kato, Angel and Sandy think of that coon smell on you?! 😉
Kato was happy to see me (and hungry). I made sure to change shirts quickly so I wasn’t accosted by curious pets. It didn’t help too much. I had cats attached to me for days.
Sounds interesting. Great picture!
Thank you! It is hard to get a good picture of a wriggly baby.
My Ma has had those classes and they are vital. Fosters are sometimes needed for wild life and I am so happy that you were able to take the class. Even though most wildlife can survive on their own, their are some instances when they can’t. But what people don’t know is those fosters teach babies how to forage for themselves and not depend on humans.
True. I think even a basic knowledge can help wildlife at least until you can transfer them to someone more knowledgeable. It was funny listening to their stories about people bringing in “mice” only to find out they are possums.
That’s just fascinating! What a wonderful opportunity!
I’m glad we have an active and supportive rehab community here in North Texas. I get to take the advanced class mid-May.
My local vet school does wildlife rehab. One day I saw a bald eagle in a crate. It was huge. I have to admit I was a little scared . . . and that’s hard for a bird dog to admit!
Bald Eagles are very large! There is nothing wrong with admitting your limitations. Stick to the smaller birds, you’ll be fine.
That’s so cool! Coons have the cutest little feet!
They do! I was surprised how soft they were. Possums have neat feet too (and funny tails!)
Your class sounds really cool and that raccoon’s face is priceless
It was my first time bottle feeding ANYTHING! He was a little frustrated with me… We worked it out.
What a nice thing to do. Happy Wordless Wednesday.
OK, that guy is soooo cute! Just don’t let my girls see him. 😉
Thank you. Doing this is a blessing and a gift, a labour of love. I do rescue, too.
McGuffy’sReader
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Love it! We had a domesticated raccoon that lived with us for 13 years. Her name was Rocky and she used the litterbox and played with the cat – Hobie – they were buddies!
I’m a wildlife rehabber – it’s an amazing thing. I just had a 2 weeks old raccoon with me. Now I’m back to squirrels, awaiting the arrival of more raccoons. I absolutely love them. This afternoon I fed three 2-weeks old skunks. Need to post pictures of them. There’s a bit of it on my FB business page – http://www.facebook.com/talesofthekitty