My new baby (crow)

[jojo2316]

Sorry to hijack this thread, it's just that these posts made me start thinking about some of the animals I've rescued in the past so I was going through my files to see if I had some photos.
Sue

These are INCREDIBLE pictures Sue! I can’t believe you managed to raise those little pinkie squirrels! What was their story? Did you find them - or are you the person people bring these things to? Presumably you didn’t feed them cow’s milk? Was it kitten formula maybe? And could they be repatriated to the wild?
sorry! So many questions!!

[DustingMyselfOff]

These are INCREDIBLE pictures Sue! I can’t believe you managed to raise those little pinkie squirrels! What was their story? Did you find them - or are you the person people bring these things to? Presumably you didn’t feed them cow’s milk? Was it kitten formula maybe? And could they be repatriated to the wild?
sorry! So many questions!!

I love talking about animal rescues so don't worry about too many questions - no such thing! That particular batch of baby squirrels I found in the woods at the back of my yard. We had had a fairly violent storm with high winds and when I was walking around picking up branches and limbs from the trees, I heard a loud, persistent screaming coming from the woods, like a high pitched squeal that did not sound like a normal nature sound. And as I got closer I realized it was coming from down low rather than up in the trees so I was doubly concerned. After searching through leaves and weeds and branches for a while I found the source of screaming.... a newborn squirrel on the ground. I picked it up and put it in my shirt and then kept looking because I figured if there were one, there had to be more. I ended up finding 3, and brought them in the house to warm them. Then I made a makeshift "nest" for them and put them in it in a branch as high as I could reach, hoping their mom would come find them. I sat and watched for hours but she never came. I brought them in for the night, on a heating pad, and used a syringe to feed them kitten replacement milk. The next day (I called in sick from work) I put them back in the nest and watched with binoculars. Mom never showed up, but lots of predators were taking an interest. After the third day of hoping Mom would show, I gave up and adopted them.

Their primary diet was kitten replacement milk every 3 hours (round the clock) and when I noticed their skin starting to shrivel, I knew they were getting dehydrated so added Pedialyte between feedings. They grew, and got fur, and opened their eyes, and started to crawl. When they were fully furred and didn't need the heating pad and heat lamps anymore I moved them to a cage with lots of branches and they started learning to climb, and then started showing an interest in solid food. I would take them out several times a day and let them climb all over me, sit with me on the couch, etc. and once they started scratching and nipping I knew they wanted to move on. I moved the cage outdoors, but kept it closed and let them acclimate. Then after a few days I left the cage door open and they would go out to play during the day and go back to the cage at night. They would still come take peanuts from me for months, and then they went off and had families of their own. Bittersweet, and I do it every chance I get.

Some of my rescues are things I find and some are from people who now know that I do this sort of thing and I get phone calls from wildlife rehabilitators who are full. Fortunately I had bosses who knew of my crazy quirks and they looked the other way when I would set up boxes and heatlamps in my office and keep replacement milk in the executive fridge.
Sue

[jojo2316]

Oh Sue - you should write a book!!
i truly admire you. Thank you so much for sharing

[jojo2316]

image.jpgFeathers! And yesterday she started preening. Proud mama moment!

[BlueIris]

She's so adorable - you must be very proud!

[Carys]

OMG ! Feathers coming already, this is SO quick !!! Congratulations.

[WiredIncorrectly]

And here is a story that sums up perfectly why I save every living thing I can. When my adult daughter scoffed at me for stopping her from killing a bug so I could instead pick it up and move it outside, I showed her this story:

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?"

The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."

"I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said,
"It made a difference for that one.”

Beautiful! I love this.

More info on that story here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star_Thrower

Original essay here: http://www.brontaylor.com/courses/pd...tarThrower.pdf

[pulisa]

Sue, you always beat yourself up about your anxiety but just look at what a difference you have made to the beautiful creatures you have rescued over the years! You have your vocation there particularly now you have more time to spend doing things you enjoy? You must be an expert "rescuer" and your knowledge would be in high demand!

Jojo..the same goes for you! What a great job you are doing with feathery Moss!

[DustingMyselfOff]

Sue, you always beat yourself up about your anxiety but just look at what a difference you have made to the beautiful creatures you have rescued over the years! You have your vocation there particularly now you have more time to spend doing things you enjoy? You must be an expert "rescuer" and your knowledge would be in high demand!

Jojo..the same goes for you! What a great job you are doing with feathery Moss!

Thanks for your kind words, Pulisa, but as I always say when rescuing an animal (whether it be dog, bird, squirrel, chipmunk, or turtles (of which I now have 30!), "I don't rescue them - they rescue me!"

My dream would be to be able to spend all day and night with animals of all types, any type, but unfortunately there is no money in it. As a matter of fact, it ends up COSTING me money because these animals need special supplies and special diets.

I've thought about working at a vet's office, but there isn't that much interaction with animals unless I go to school for a few years, which I don't want to do at this stage of my life.

I have (and probably will again) volunteer at the Humane Society, but it's more heart-breaking than it is rewarding: I care TOO much, and my heart breaks for these neglected, abused, caged animals and I end up leaving there in tears too often. And I end up bringing home too many of the animals.

Anyway, the occasional wildlife that falls into my lap will have to do for now. It keeps me challenged and busy for a few months and then I get to release it, feeling I did some good, and anxiously waiting for the next rescue to show up at my doorstep.

Sue

[jojo2316]

Thanks for your kind words, Pulisa, but as I always say when rescuing an animal (whether it be dog, bird, squirrel, chipmunk, or turtles (of which I now have 30!), "I don't rescue them - they rescue me!"

My dream would be to be able to spend all day and night with animals of all types, any type, but unfortunately there is no money in it. As a matter of fact, it ends up COSTING me money because these animals need special supplies and special diets.

I've thought about working at a vet's office, but there isn't that much interaction with animals unless I go to school for a few years, which I don't want to do at this stage of my life.

I have (and probably will again) volunteer at the Humane Society, but it's more heart-breaking than it is rewarding: I care TOO much, and my heart breaks for these neglected, abused, caged animals and I end up leaving there in tears too often. And I end up bringing home too many of the animals.

Anyway, the occasional wildlife that falls into my lap will have to do for now. It keeps me challenged and busy for a few months and then I get to release it, feeling I did some good, and anxiously waiting for the next rescue to show up at my doorstep.

Sue

could you maybe set yourself up as a registered charity? Just thinking aloud....