Baby Whitetail buck - JD

6/17/11
When Teresa dropped off Critterbug the blue jay at Rogers Wildlife (the bird rehab), the folks there asked what kind of animals we work with. Teresa told her mainly small mammals and mentioned the fact that we currently have three fawns. The lady from Rogers said that was fortunate because somebody had called there earlier asking about help with a fawn. Rogers put us in touch with Vanessa from Scurry, Tx. Vanessa had a little fawn that had been dropped off at a feed store and had been through several hands, had severe diarrhea and now wasn't eating.

Teresa talked to Vanessa, who had done the best she could do, but felt like she was losing ground and didn't want the fawn to die. I met Vanessa in Terrell and picked up the fawn. This little man needed help; he was dehydrated and sick and only a couple of weeks old. His eyes were dull and he was having trouble standing on his own. I tossed JD into the front seat of the Peterbilt and we were on the way. Teresa met me in Edgewood and made a run for the vet. After antibiotics, rehydration and a feeding tube for the first twelve hours, little JD seems to have rounded the corner. By Saturday morning at 2:30am, JD had enough strength to suck the bottle. By 7am, JD was slurping on a bottle. By noon, JD was eating like a champ and following us around. JD's eyes are bright and he feels good enough to play a little now. We'll keep JD quarantined for a day or two until he can get stronger, but we believe he's rounded the corner and is on his way to being strong and healthy.

JD

Critterbug - Blue Jay

6/14/11
We got a call from the local game warden. Teresa (no relation) in Point found an orphaned Blue Jay and didn't know what else to do. When I spoke to Teresa on the phone, she kept referring to the baby as "this little critterbug". We picked up the bird, which is a young fledgling, and brought it to the farm. There are no immediate signs of illness or injury. We'll care for it and in a couple of weeks, it'll be old enough to make it on its own.

Critterbug the Blue Jay just after his bath.

Mother Molly

About a year ago, we adopted a stray dog at a local pet store. She was presented as an Australian Shepherd (but seems to have some Pitt Bull physical characteristics). We named her Molly. Molly has been the sweetest dog we could've ever asked for.

A few months ago, one of our goats had a kid that she abandoned. The baby goat didn't seem to have the will to get up or take milk. We brought the newborn goat to the house to give it some cholostrum milk and try to save it. Molly showed interest the baby goat. Molly stimulated the goat (caused it to have a bowel movement and urinate by licking - its just what mothers in the wild do), then she bathed the baby goat from head to toe. The baby still didn't want to get up. Molly put her nose under the baby's belly and began to lift it up until its back legs were under it. Then Molly raised the baby goat's front legs in the same manner. The baby was standing. We sat back in amazement watching this take place. The baby had given up and was about to die. Nothing we did worked, and we normally do a pretty good job with animals. Molly saved the baby goat.

Next, we showed baby squirrels to Molly - something we'd never try with our other dogs. Molly bathed and stimulated them.

Baby raccoons? Same thing.

Baby deer? You guessed it.

We've watched nervous, scared fawns come out of their transport cage, literally afraid to take a step. We've seen Molly walk quietly to the fawn, bathe its face and nuzzle it. You can see the fawn relax and get the idea that maybe its gonna be ok after all.

Molly is an amazing dog. Molly had been to several adoption fairs with no takers. The shelters can only keep dogs for so long before... well you get the idea.

Please give a shelter dog a chance to live.

A little kiss

One for you too!

Welcoming a new resident

Stimulating.

Mothering a baby goat

Molly with the baby she saved

Molly greets Critterbug

Molly

Holi the deer

6/13/11
Our friends at the Holifield Science Learning Center in Plano called today. They had an orphaned baby Whitetail doe. The story goes that this baby's mother was hit by a car and killed in Wichita Falls, Texas. The baby survived for a little while on its own, and was found hiding in a culvert under a roadway. Fire Ants had gotten to its face (see photo of her muzzle) and she had a few cuts and scrapes and was pretty badly dehydrated and hadn't eaten.


The folks at Holifield got her injuries taken care of, got her hydrated and well-fed. They needed a foster home to finish what they'd started, so we got the call.


We named this little girl Holi in honor of the Holifield Center.

Having Pepper and Penny already on hand, both within a week or so in age, Holi will fit in well.

Holi checks out her new bed

Holi approves!

Whelps left over from ant bites and a little scar on the nose.

Ok, you've seen the deer photos and you've probably noticed that the deer are in a girl's bedroom. Do we keep deer in the house? Yes. And no. For the first few days, we keep these babies in our daughter's room - we can keep it cool, draw the curtains so the room stays dark and can keep it quiet. We do this in an effort to lessen the stress on the new arrivals. The babies are used to being put in a safe place by their mothers. They seldom move from their beds. After a few days, as the babies get accustomed to their new settings and get used to the new food and any medications, we move them outside to a safe pen.

 

Two "abandoned" fawns

June 10, 2011

This week our local Game Warden called twice, each time with a fawn. Well-intentioned people found the fawns alone, assumed they were abandoned or orphaned and brought them home. The folks turned the fawns over to the Game Warden, who in turn transferred the fawns to our facility.

Both fawns are healthy little does and we expect both to do well. Our daughter named one "Penny" and the Game Warden's wife named one "Pepper". Penny is more copper colored and Pepper is very dark.

We're very fortunate to have two fawns about the same age. They can buddy-up and have a much higher chance of survival when they are old enough to be released into the wild. Having a buddy to hang out with lessens the chance of them imprinting on us, as there is risk that a wild animal that's only been exposed to humans will not see humans as a threat; This lowers their chance of survival in the wild.

Pepper

Penny

Note: Deer have their fawns starting in May and into June. The mother doe will take the fawn to what she believes is a safe location and bed it down while she goes to forage for food. Once mom has a full belly, she returns and takes the fawn with her. If you find a fawn alone, and there are no signs that it is injured, in obvious distress or gaunt and dehydrated, just leave it where it is. Mom will be back shortly.

SKUNK!!! Run away! ...or maybe not

6/3/11
DFW Wildlife Coalition put us in touch with a lady from Hunt County whose dog brought the baby home in his mouth. The baby skunk weighs less than 80 grams and is 3 1/2 - 4 inches from head to tail. Teresa named her Petunuia over vehement protests from our daughter. Petunia has minor bruising and swelling in her lower abdomen from being carried around in a dog's mouth (We'd say she's pretty lucky; it could've been much worse). Petunia  has a good appetite, has responded well to our efforts to hydrate her, eliminates waste fine and has clear urine - all good signs that indicate no internal injuries. We expect Petunia to thrive.

More Opossums

A rehabilitator in Dallas was overrun with Opossums. We took ten of the little darlings off his hands. We housed them until they were old enough to survive on their own and released them to do battle on the local snake population on 6/2/11

Raccoon - Bonnie

4/28/11

Some folks in Garland found a very young raccoon wandering in their backyard. They kept the baby coon from harm and called the DFW Wildlife Coalition. DFW called us and John met with the people at a place about halfway between Garland and Emory.

We named this pretty little girl Bonnie. Bonnie was in good shape but was very hungry and mildly dehydrated. We were able to fix those problems in short order.

Since raccoons are such highly socialized animals, they do so much better when they're paired with other raccoons. We were aware of another rehabilitator who had a single coon of about the same age. Our plate was full and it would be so much better for Bonnie to have a buddy, we transferred her. Now Bonnie is with another raccoon and is doing great. Both raccoons will kept until they're mature enough to survive in the wild and will be released.

Possums (or "Opossums" if you prefer formality)

4/28/11
Sunnyvale Animal Control called with seven baby possums. John picked them up and brought them to the farm. Other than slight dehydration, all were in good shape. No medical intervention was necessary. The baby possums will be kept until they're old enough to survive on their own and will be released into the wild.

People ask "What do possums DO?". Turns out that Opossums are snake killers. Poisonous snakes can bite an Opossum with little negative effect to the Opossum - their body temperature stays in the 80's and isn't warm enough to allow snake venom to have ill affect. Possums eat insects like termites and are also scavengers, eating the decomposing flesh of dead animals and ridding the place of smelly carcasses.

Raccoons!

4/28/11

The Holifield Science Learning Center called us with four baby raccoons that had wandered into a yard. The alert homeowner watched for Mom. but never saw her. The alert homeowner intervened and took the baby 'coons to the Hollifield Center in Plano.

When John picked them up, all four were hungry and dehydrated, screaming with every breath. Once at the farm, plenty of food and hydration, temperature management and a safe environment were the order of the day. The four babies were about two weeks old and hadn't opened their eyes yet. Since the four had been together and were obviously siblings, they were quarantined together. Once we were certain that they were not sick, they were placed in a cage and kept with the other animals.

Due to their physical characteristics, we named them Lucy (loud and fun-loving), Ricky (small and dark), Fred (bigger in size and friendly) and Ethel (always joining in whatever the other three were doing).

We've been amazed. Raccoons are VERY socially oriented; they want to spend every minute with us. They imprint almost immediately and are very dependent on us. As they grew and finally opened their eyes, they became a constant source of entertainment and laughter. They play constantly. They are very curious and can climb like nobody's business.
We've always heard the term "Coon-fingering" used to describe a person touching and handling things. The coons' feet are shaped very much like human hands and their toes have three joints like a human hand. The skin on the soles of their feet is very soft and supple. Raccoons touch and feel EVERYTHING. Ethel and Lucy like to sit on John's shoulder and play with his ears. Ethel loves to dig in John's beard. Ricky and Fred play-fight constantly. 

 

"Bunny Foo-Foo" (Cottontail Rabbit)

4/11/11
A teacher in Rains County found this little one with what appeared to be a broken front leg. Our daughter named this one after the kid's song of the same name. Other than the leg injury, he was in decent shape. What this little one needed was rest and quiet time for his leg to heal. Hydration, good food and plenty of rest in a quiet setting fixed what was wrong. Bunny Foo-Foo was released 5/7/11

BOBCAT!!!

4/1/11

A local animal control agency picked up an adult bobcat and brought her to the Holifield Center in Plano. This was a beautiful mature adult female bobcat with no apparent health problems. When we run across an animal that we can't house, we have contacts with other rescue/rehab people. Such was the case with a bobcat - pretty as she was, she could also be dangerous and we don't have the facilities or expertise to meet her needs. We transported this bobcat to Crosstimbers Ranch, where she will be cared for until such time as she is ready to be released.

About twice the size of a large house cat. When I knelt down to take this photo, she let out a yowl that made my hair stand on end!

4 squirrels

4/1/11
We received a call from the Holifield Center in Plano, Texas. Local residents had dropped off four baby squirrels. John transported the critters home and we went from there. Three were old enough to survive on their own, but we wanted to keep them for a few days to make certain they were healthy and mature enough to be released. All three were in good condition and had the necessary skills to survive on their own. On 4/22/11 all three were released.

The fourth squirrel was still a baby. We named this little boy Jim (for no apparent reason) and fed him formula on the every-three-hours schedule. Jim did great and was approximately the same age as Rusty, Dusty and Billy The Kid. Jim was released at the same time as the other three and is doing great in the wild.

Rusty, Dusty and Billy The Kid

FEBRUARY 17, 2011

A resident of Fruitvale called, saying they had found three orphaned/abandoned squirrels. They had tried to keep them warm with a heat-lamp and had tried to feed them cow's milk. Neither was working. All were sickly and badly dehydrated. Another 24 hours would've doomed these little bugs.

We named them Rusty, Dusty and Billy The Kid in honor of John's father who died in November. John's dad had told the story of having three goats during the Great Depression

Once we picked them up, we put them on direct heat, re-hydrated them with sub-cutaneous injections of IV fluid. Once they were warm and hydrated, we began to feed them on a schedule that required feedings every three hours around the clock. All three survived and then began to thrive! We moved them through a succession of larger cages until all three were yound adults and were ready to be released. We released Rusty, Dusty and Billy The Kid on May 31, 2011. All three stay pretty close to the house and we see them almost daily.