Circle P Wildlife Rescue: 5/16/12 Baby male raccoon

Who we are... and who we aren't

Who we are:

We are John and Teresa. We live in rural Rains County, Texas. We both grew up involved in farming and ranching. We learned how to care for animals from our parents.

John's dad worked for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Inmates working on the grounds of the prison frequently found injured/orphaned small animals. These inmates knew who to bring the animals to: John's dad. Dad brought the animals home where John's mother and older sister bottle-fed them and nursed them back to health. When they were old enough to survive in the wild, they were released. Seems like there was always a baby ground squirrel, rabbits and other small animals living in a shoebox under the bathroom vanity.

Teresa started caring for orphaned babies on her own as a child. Growing up on a working ranch, Teresa frequently found injured and orphaned animals. Teresa raised baby Cottontail Rabbits on a regular basis - something few people are able do successfully.

When we first got married, we rescued and/or rehabilitated several dogs, a pigeon with one wing (result of a hawk attack) and a baby dove. We lived in town at that point and didn't really have a place to keep wild animals, but we did what we could.

In 2008 we decided, for a number of reasons to move away from the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. We found a few acres with a small house and a barn on it just outside Emory, Texas. The owner of the property was an elderly man named John Hagen.

Mr. Hagen was an amateur conservationist and had home-made bird boxes of every size all over the property. One housed a colony of bees; Some housed flying squirrels; Others had owls, ducks, Bluebirds, etc. As John showed us around, we knew we'd found home. We bought the place from John and made friends with him. John was in poor health when we met him, and within a year of our meeting him, John died. We miss John very much and hope he would be pleased with our efforts.

What we believe:

We are conservative Christians and our work with wild animals is an attempt to give our testimony and to serve and honor God.

God created the animals:

Genesis 1:25 - God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

God cares about the animals:
Luke 12:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.

God gives each person gifts or abilities to use in His service.

1 Corinthians 12:1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
1 Corinthians 12:7 - But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man
1 Corinthians12:8 - For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
1 Corinthians 12:9 - To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

We use our meager abilities to help these animals survive. We house, care and feed them until they are mature enough to survive on their own in the wild, and then we return them to where they are supposed to be - in the wild.

Who we aren't.
We're NOT animal rights activists. We believe these people are misguided and few of them ever lift a finger to actually help an animal. Most are quite content to make spectacles of themselves protesting outside a fried chicken restaurant or throwing red paint on people wearing fur coats. Not our cup of tea.

We're NOT against hunting or fishing. We believe hunting and fishing are very valid methods to keep animal populations within healthy boundaries, ensuring enough natural resources for all the wild animals to thrive. We support hunting as a source of healthy meat and have no qualms with hunters using wild game to feed their families.

We don't make pets of the wild animals, as much as we love them, it'd be a terrible disservice to them. They were born in the wild and that's where they're supposed to live.

Legalities: We are working to get our license from Texas Parks and Wildlife. In the meantime, we volunteer and are listed as sub-permitees of a larger wildlife rescue/rehabilitation operation in Terrell, Texas.

We are legally authorized to treat, house and transport wild animals.

Monday, June 11, 2012

5/16/12 Baby male raccoon - "Bandet"

People who take the time to get involved and do the right thing are our kind of folks. None of these animals would be here if someone hadn't taken the time to give a darn and take their valuable time to get these critters to us. This story involves an entire family.

Monica C called the DFW Wildlife Coalition and reported that she had found a baby male raccoon in Rowlett. All the numbers DFW gave Monica were dead ends - the rehabilitators Monica called were full, didn't work with raccoons, were out of town or were busy with their jobs. Very understandable. The last number Monica had was ours. We're busy, but we don't turn away animals.

Monica reported that she had found a baby male raccoon near a creek. The raccoon was wet and cold, very hungry and pretty badly dehydrated - talk about your perfect storm of bad things for a baby. Monica and her daughters Audrey and Lindsey did everything they could do until they could get this baby to us. Audrey and Lindsey named him Bandet with an "e". Bandet it is! Monica fed Bandet and got as much hydration into him as she could - I don't think he would've survived otherwise.

Our daughter Katie and I went to meet Monica at a church off of I-30 near Rockwall. Monica ended up using way more than her allotted lunch break from work, but wanted to see that Bandet got the care he needed. I hydrated Bandet with an injection of lactated ringers, gave him some Fox Valley formula (expensive and worth every penny) then it was load and go time.

After a few days on a very intense feeding schedule, constant sub-cutaneous hydration and a warm place to stay, it was clear that Bandet was beginning to turn the corner.

During all this, Monica's husband Jeff was out of town. Jeff got to hear about Bandet every day by phone and email, but by the time Jeff got back in town, Bandet had already come to Circle P. A couple of weekends after Bandet came to us, Jeff, Monica, Lindsey and Audrey came out for an afternoon. Jeff got to meet Bandet for the first time and the rest of the family got to see our little operation. Katie even demonstrated her technique for riding a wild hog - (Phoebe the wild hog from a previous post is quite large now and thinks Katie was put on this earth to be her best friend).

Bandet is a little Alpha Male. He knows what he wants and he makes it happen. Bandet is all over the cage, climbing this and testing that. Annoy him and he'll crouch down, open his mouth and let out a growl that will make you think twice about putting your hand near him. Let our dogs get too close for his comfort and he will spit and hiss until he runs them off - including the Rhodesian Ridgeback. Get Bandet started playing and he will wear you out and still want more long after you're tired and ready to go to bed. Look in the dictionary under "thrive" and you'll see Bandet's photo - he had so far to come and he's done more than we ever thought possible. Once he passed the quarantine stage, we put Bandet's cage next to the two females. They made friends. One day Teresa had the idea that Bandet might stimulate the two little females who are slightly behind in their physical coordination and development - sure enough, within a few hours, he had both girls playing and fighting with him. Before the day was out, Bandet had them climbing the sides of the cage and then had them hanging upside down from the ceiling. Good job Bandet.

Bandet practices getting his creep on in my camo chair.

Eat and grow, eat and grow

The little stuffed bear was a donation from Audrey and Lindsey. It has been Bandet's constant companion. When Bandet first came, he was smaller than the bear!