Well, it’s that time again, we are in release mode at the centre; a very special time of year for us and the animals in our care. But not all get to go home.
Momma Fox
Momma underwent a second surgery last month to reset her other broken front leg. Dr. Sherri Cox of the National Wildlife Centre did the long surgery again. Momma gets vet checked every week to have her incision, pins and leg range of movement checked.
The good news is she is doing very well and the check up I sat in on with our Dr. Nellissa was good, she was very happy with her improvement. Smiles all around. She is moving around more and getting hard to handle. This is all great news. She is starting to feel better.
Her last vet check I sat in on Dr. Sherri joined us. She is to have one more regular vet check the following week. Then in two weeks taking us into the last of September or first week of October, all goes well, Dr.Sherri will remove her pins.
She will then be ready for her next step in her recovery. An outside enclosure. She will be overwintering with us as she continues to get her strength back for a very special release day come spring.
This is the plan. Just as long as her leg continues on healing with no foreseeable issues arising. Keep sending her your good healing energies.
Cottontail Rabbit
Not every story is a happy one. Our little cottontail rabbit who got burned in a fire pit didn’t make it. She seemed to be doing fairly well. But with burn victims things can change at the drop of a pin. Rest In Peace my sweet little one.
Please check fire pits and wood piles before you light that match. Someone may be living there. Keep the fire pits covered so that nothing can get in to nest in there. I have often seen toads in mine. Always check. You may save a life or lives.
Telly the fox
Telly came to us in critical condition as you may remember. He just lay around hiding his tiny bald head. His whole body was bald. He was emaciated, mange had run its course with this poor little fox kit. So tiny. Well he has been in an outdoor enclosure and he has fur all over his body. Not peach fuzz, fur. He has big bright eyes. He is eating well and hides when we go in. Oh he is watching us. His little head can just be seen peeking through the branches. Adorable beyond. And when we leave he pops out and sniffs everywhere that our feet touched. He is a precious tiny little fox. He is scheduled for release soon. A true little miracle.
Boris the Porcupine
Boris has been with us for a long time. He came in with severe mange. Yes, porcupines can get mange. It affects their sensitive stomach area. He had to have special medicated baths once in a while to help move those horrible thick crusts. He seemed to enjoy them, then he got to sit by a nice heater to dry off. A day at the spa.
Boris also suffered from a respiratory infection, porcupines are very sensitive to medications. After a lot of work, our Dr. Nellissa was able to find various medications for us to try with him. But Boris is still with us. He is in a nice outdoor enclosure. Loves his bananas and corn on the cob etc. But every time he clears up his nose gets stuffy again. Boris is slated to go for a scope soon to have a look inside. Hopefully, we can figure it out. He is a very special patient.
Sobey – the Redtail Hawk
Our young redtail hawk who flew into a truck’s windshield is doing well. She came in with head trauma, with other suspected issues ruled out. However, she appears to be blind in one eye. Dr. Nellissa has put her on eye drops once a day to try to help resolve this issue.
Two days ago, on September 21st, Sobey was sent to Shades of Hope, from there she will be transfered to Sandy Pines with another hawk for flight testing.
Procyon Wildlife would like to thank Laura Loudoun Wilson, CD for generously donating this ultrasound machine. It was donated and named in memory of Nancy, her now deceased partner of 49 years. Nancy’s involvement in animal rescue and placement spanned many decades. Her personal sacrifice and dedication helped save literally thousands of God’s creatures.
Old Female Skunk
On July 29th I got a message from nearby regarding a skunk with injured leg. We set a trap and on August 2nd the skunk was caught. She seemed overall quite quiet. She was put on meds to help her and keep her comfortable. She appeared to be using her legs but just wasn’t getting better. Dr. Nellissa checked her over. And she was our first patient to use our newly donated ultrasound machine. The ultrasound results however were inconclusive at this time. She is expected to possibly have a growth of some sort and we are trying a new medication. She is a very sweet girl. So she will be with us for a while yet.
Releases
It is the end of the season for all our orphans, and our mangy foxes have healed nicely. It is almost time to say goodbye to some, others for example, squirrels, skunks, opossums, other foxes, and raccoons have already gone home. We have been in full release mode.
Our three foxes remaining foxes are scheduled to go home to freedom soon. I was able to help release the five baby skunks who came in with mange, they were critical. One passed away but we were able to save the other five. Their release was beautiful. We hung around for a while watching over them in the forest. They were amazing. Our hearts were full of happiness watching this family rooting around, digging for bugs, exploring, one made her way to the nearby stream. Absolutely perfect.
Updates on the Centre.
Procyon finally got their education trailer in. It took over 1 year to get this trailer delivered. Wayne Lloyd from Lloyds Haulage did his magic and got it in our difficult driveway. Thank you so much Wayne. You saved the day.
We have lots of enclosures to get put up for fox, coyote and raccoons that came from a dog facility that shut down. Thank you Pet Country Estate.
And with never-ending high winds, we had five large dead ash that had to come down to protect our outside animals and volunteers. Another big thank you to that team. Arabi, Dhiviya, Evan, Jabeen and Devon. Devon works for Sugarbush Tree. They worked with extreme care to get this job done safely.
As fall is upon us we are working to get the centre ship-shape for winter. The work is never done. The animals never stop coming.
Please watch for turtles, deer, moose, coyotes, bears, fox, every creature that is rooting for food, and young ones searching for their space. Deer and moose are in their rutting season in October. Some are getting ready to hibernate. Turtle hatchlings are coming out of their nests and adults are moving back to hibernaculum.
Please help keep our wildlife safe. And you too. Make sure you don’t leave any food out for bears to get into as a fed bear is a dead bear. And they have had a tough season this year. Learn to be wildlife smart, and learn how to coexist.
Jen Howard
Volunteer/photographer
Procyon Wildlife