Arrivals & Releases

White Tail Deer

Due to Ron's cardiac conditions, we have had to refer white tail fawns to other facilities this year, but we have accepted several for care when there were no other facilities available. Last year, when it was time to release the fawns, Ron was still able to load them, but would have to sink to the ground each time to recover from the effort. We realized that we would have to limit our involvement with deer due to his medical problems. We regret that we have had to make this heart wrenching decision as we sincerely love the white tail deer.
On June 1, some people called because a baby deer had been trapped inside a wire-fenced area all day, and had become exhausted and injured from the entrapment. The baby had bloodied his little muzzle and was totally frightened from the ordeal. Volunteer, Leslie Johnson, responded to the call and brought the l7-pound youngster to the Center for help. Upon examination, it was evident that the fawn had also been mauled, probably by a dog. His injuries were fatal, and we were heart broken not to be able to save this baby.
On June 6, I spoke to some concerned people about another fawn in south Osceola County. A small baby deer had been walking through their property all day, wandering around without its mother. I asked if they had heard it crying as well, and they had. This was thelitlllus t~1)t.Jf a fawn is observed lying quietly and hidden from view, but found by people, we tell them to leave the baby alone and, if possible, watch for the mother deer to come just after dark. We usually receive an excited call reporting that the doe arrived to lead the baby away. A fawn is probably without its mother if one of the following is noted: walking around on its own for hours, crying and calling for the mother, or if flies are observed around or on the baby.
I told the callers that the fawn was likely an orphan and would need to be assessed by a rehabilitator. They easily got the 6 pound baby and were wiling to transport it to volunteer, Leslie Johnson, who gave the little guy bottles of warm rehydrating fluids until meeting me the next day for transport to our Center. The little fawn had, indeed, been very dry and obviously had lost his mother several days prior to being found, but he recovered very quickly and was soon receiv ing bottles of pasteurized goat milk.
During the evening of June 13, we received a 6 pound fawn from Florida Fish and Wildlife Officer Darrin Riley, who had rescued the baby and transported him to our Center. The baby joined the other little boy fawn in care, and the two became best buddies right away. We so appreciate the kind actions of our Fish and Wildlife officers over the years and salute them for protecting the innocent animals from harm.

Opossums

We have received the cutest opossum babies this spring, but, then, I probably say that every year. One morning on my way to my "other" job, I could see a dead female opossum and several babies in the middle ofa four-lane road. As quickly as I could, I performed my infamous "Carol Hardee U-Turn", and employed my emergency blinkers while exiting the vehicle. To my horror, one baby sat on his little haunches, chipping in distress for his mother, one baby lay motionless but was still alive, and another was dead. The mother opossum, too, was dead, but I carried all to the side of the roadway on the grass. When I examined the pouch on the mother's belly, I found another baby, alive and well. The baby that had been lying still on the road was unharmed, and the little guy sitting in the road crying lost half of his tail and had a bad gash along his hip line. I was so grateful to have come along when I did for all surely would have perished in a short amount of time.

That evening, I used several surgical staples to close the gaping wound on the little male opossum and hoped that
he had not sustained any internal injuries. He healed completely in a few days, and when the staples were removed, there remained almost no sign of the inflicted trauma. These three babies were joined by two single babies their size. One was a little boy in the pouch of an injured female who completely recovered and was released once her baby was weaned. Many other groups arrived for care, several so small that they were tubally fed for some weeks and another injured female was admitted with tiny babies in her pouch. At first, the female opossum could not eat on her own, but after being hand fed for several days, she began to eat on her own. And did she eat! We enjoy catching glimpses of her hairless, tiny offspring in her pouch. The babies were too small to save had the mother not survived; so we are espe cially grateful that she made it through. The photo at the top ofthis page was taken earlier than the photos at the bottom of the page to show their remarkablr progress. On summer days, the babies often hang outside of the pouch, which
can become quite warm. They do not open their eyes until they are 52 days old and remain constantly attached to the mother's teats until two months of age. At that age, they still continue to nurse most of the time.

Raccoons

We receive more than 150 raccoons each year, most ofthem orphaned, some injured, and we remain grateful to our "raccoon moms and dads" who gladly bottle feed them. Leslie and Bill Johnson, Stacy Russo, Melissa Taylor, Lindy Williams, and Christie Rodgers allow us to salvage many more lives than Ron and I could working alone. Raccoons often get a bad rap from people who have little or no tolerance for nature's creatures. After all, humans are encroaching into the territory that wild animals have always known as their home. They are just trying to survive as we all are.

Bobcats

Early in April this year, we received a call at 9PM from Seminole Animal Control. They had picked up a large, nearly grown juvenile bobcat that had sustained a fractured front leg from an auto collision. The night supervisor for Animal Control kindly asked if we were willing to accept the animal for rehab. When I told her that we would be happy to
-nelp, she wass() re1ievedanastiifed that the 6fficerwould ifiive soon for asslstance.- Rorihdpedfo place the injUred bobcat in the "big barn" which we use for bobcat rehab. We had bales of hay stacked in several areas as hiding places, big bowls of food and water, and seclusion for the injured feline. The fracture was not compound and was perfectly aligned; so we knew that the bobcat had a good chance of recovery barring unforeseen internal injuries.
We were able to release her at the end of May, totally recovered and fully functional. Ron had to wrestle her into a large animal carrier using a control pole and a net. Of course, the angry bobcat was not in the least cooperative and quite powerful, so Ron really had his hands full. Prior to loading her, he had to pin her down so that I could administer her vaccinations and wormer. Thankfully, by that time, she had tired a little; so I had an easy job of it. Once that she was safely loaded, we breathed an understandable sigh of relief. Photos on this page are of the little sweetheart.

Eastern Gray Squirrels

For the first time in our more than two decades of raising squirrels, we received gray squirrel babies non-stop through the end of winter and throughout the spring. Usually, we do not admit baby grays after the month of February, and rarely see any until the end of July to early August. We attribute this surge to the bountiful acorn crop that we noted this fall and winter. Perhaps the mother squirrels were extra healthy from the vast supplies of available food; we can't be sure, but that is our best guess. We aren't complaining for, certainly, nothing is more adorable than an infant gray squirrel; we were just surprised to receive so many out of season this year.

Southern Flying Squirrels

The final four flyers admitted for care this spring were released late in June. These four were late arrivals in February and were hand fed when first admitted. Ron climbed high up into two large oak trees to hang their specially made flying squirrel wooden bed boxes.
Because flying squirrels are nocturnal, we do not have much interaction with them once that they are weaned and graduate to an outdoor enclosure. Food is placed in the enclosure daily as well as fresh water. We do tap on their wooden bed boxes so that they show their little faces, and we know that they are accounted for.