Tagged: “#rescue”

Imprinted Deer Rescue

We have a new guest here at Nature’s Edge. Assisted a local game warden with a highly imprinted and malnourished female white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Deer was found as a fawn and given to somebody else as a “gift.” While an imprinted fawn seems like a cute pet, they can be very dangerous as adults. Their hooves are razor sharp and a male with antlers can do some serious damage, especially during breeding season.Please understand momma leaves her babies alone during the day to protect them from predators. Mom has an odor babies do not. Mom is close by watching. We make posts every year on how to tell if a fawn is truly in need of help. Please contact a rehabber if you find a fawn to discuss the situation.This girl will stay with us for now to see if we can wild her up enough for a safe release as well as get her to a proper body condition. Special thanks to Amethyst and Justin for their assistance with pick up and transport, and the use of their horse trailer. It took all 4 of us to safely move this gal.

We Need a New Set of Wheels!

We Need a New Set of Wheels!

Nature’s Edge Wildlife and Reptile Rescue is in desperate need of a new vehicle. To say we put a vehicle through it’s paces is an understatement. The Suburban we have now is a 2005 and has over 230,000 miles on it. The repairs are beyond starting to exceed the value, and will cost too much to make it pass Texas vehicle inspection this month. We use 4 wheel drive on a regular basis, haul stuff (including a trailer), travel to education and adoption events, picking up supplies and animals, and let’s not forget the occasional use as an emergency ladder to get birds out of trees.

Last year we drove more than 13,000 miles picking up animals, supplies, traveling to education programs, reptile expos, etc. About 10,000 miles consisted of transporting animals, over 2,000 miles were driven traveling to education programs and almost 700 miles driven to reptile expos. And that doesn’t even count all the miles driven to and from our vet’s office and that is a 67 mile trip.

We made three trips down to the coast after Hurricane Harvey in August 2017 to pick up wildlife and deliver needed supplies to wildlife rehabilitators. We have driven as far away as New Mexico to pick up animals in need. We drove to Tyler one afternoon just to pick up a western ratsnake that had swallowed three ceramic eggs. We also drove to Kansas one year to meet a college professor that adopted several reptiles for use as education animals.

A reliable vehicle is necessary to help us continue caring for animals in need. Please consider helping us purchase a new used vehicle.

As always, we truly thank each and every one of you for your continued support!

https://www.gofundme.com/wildlife-rescue-needs-a-new-set-of-wheels?fbclid=IwAR3ntD4WGCNQE0db5wLCv0xZIoNgCddhqVTG6BycnLftjymPXi-8xjC2Kfs

Zilla Products are the BEST!

Zilla Products are the BEST!

Open a large package to find this!
Thanks to our friends at Zilla Products for the donation of dehydrated food. Just in time for baby season! To learn more about Zilla and their products, visit their website: https://www.zillarules.com/

Needing a Rescue Vehicle

Needing a Rescue Vehicle

The rescue is in need of a new vehicle. To say we put a vehicle through it’s paces is an understatement. The Suburban we have now is a 2005 and has 230,000 miles on it. The repairs are beyond starting to exceed the value, and will cost too much to make it pass Texas vehicle inspection. We use 4 wheel drive on a regular basis, haul stuff (including a trailer), travel to education and adoption events, picking up supplies and animals, and let’s not forget the occasional use as an emergency ladder to get birds out of trees.
We are hoping one of our followers has an in with a used car dealer in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex.
We need a large SUV, 4×4, in good shape and trustworthy. And let’s not forget price range. We are not looking to break the bank.

Found a Baby Squirrel?

Found a Baby Squirrel?

Well baby squirrel season started already. We currently have 6 baby fox squirrels (Sciurus niger) in our Baby Warm incubator. One has a minor injury from falling from the nest. But what I really want to talk about is what to do, and what not to do if you find an orphaned baby.

But first let’s put a myth to rest. Mom will absolutely take her babies back even if you touched them. There, that’s a thing you know now. 

  • See if you can locate the nest it came from. Mother squirrels usually have a backup nest already built so reuniting is very possible. The smaller the babies are, the easier it is for mom to take them back to her nest.
  • If reuniting is not an option due to injury or other reason, put the baby in a box with a lid, keep it it quiet and warm, and do NOT try to give it any food, milk, water, etc… This is for a few reasons. Baby has to be at proper temperate, so does the formula, and they have to be slowly introduced to formula so they do not get diarrhea (see picture). Diarrhea causes dehydration if not dealt with first. It’s also pretty messy!
  • Contact a permitted rehabber. ANY small mammal rehabber. If they can not take it, most will help you find a rehabber close to you.
  • Be patient. Lots of calls coming in about babies right now. Leave messages if you get voicemails! Do not hang up and call right back. We could be either working with animals, on another call, or at our day job and not in a position to answer a phone.
  • Did I mention to not offer any food or water?

As always, thank you for your support.

Best Easter Pets

Best Easter Pets

Spring is almost upon us and that means Easter. Baby ducks, chicks, and rabbits galore. Rescues will start getting calls about 3-4 weeks after that from people looking to surrender their animals.
These are the only ducks, chicks, or rabbits you should buy for your kids as gifts for Easter.

Slow Motion Rattlesnake Rattle Another View

https://www.facebook.com/Naturesedgewildliferescue/videos/2252940831591411/?t=59

Gray Fox Update

Gray Fox Update

Just wanted to post an update in the young grey fox we took in back in October that was hit by a car and needed the back leg pinned. Great news, the leg looks great and the pin was removed last night. While she was under we did a thorough exam and I cleaned her ears out. Now for some exercise and chasing prey!

Reptiles Dumped at Local PetCo

Reptiles Dumped at Local PetCo

We received a call from a local Petco that when they came into work they found somebody had dumped three snakes in tubs in front of the store sometime before they got there.
The three snakes turned out to be a prairie kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster), a western ratsnake (Pantherolhis obsoletus) and an eastern ratsnake (Pantherophis alleghaniensis) (formerly known as a yellow ratsnake).
All were in tubs that smelled horrible due to soaking wet bedding, had mold and fungus, dead and decaying rodents, flies and maggots. Tubs went immediately into the trash and snakes were bathed and cleaned up. 
The western ratsnake has some mouth rot issues (see pictures) and part of the upper lip area is gone. She will go on antibiotics immediately with cleanings of the area every day.
The eastern ratsnake definitely is thin and needs a couple of good meals.
The prairie king actually looks good considering.
All were placed in quarantine for parasites after being cleaned up and examined.
All 3 are native to the US, the eastern rat being the only one not native to Texas. None can be released so they will join our education team when healthy enough to do so.

The Truth about Wildlife Rehab

Okay I can not believe I even need to talk about this, but, due to recent phone calls and conversations I feel I must.
First off, rehabbing animals is NOT our job. Let me explain. Helping animals is what we do, but nobody pays us to do this. We actually pay for the privilege to help animals. We pay for the permits, food, medical supplies, heating, electricity, water, etc… Saying it’s a job would mean that somebody pays us to do this. There is no reimbursement from the state or feds for what we do. In fact, most rehabbers work a regular job besides rehabbing so that they can continue to rehab animals.
Second, we operate out of our home. Most rehabbers do. We can not afford a big rehab center. Wish we could. Most places that do have had said centers donated to them to operate out of. Operating out of ones home when it comes to caring for sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife has it’s own unique set of challenges.
So to summarize, we operate off of our own back pockets, in kind donations, and sometimes we find small grants and other small projects such as education events to help offset costs.
So next time you call a rehabber and demand they come out to save an animal because “it’s their job”, please remember it’s not a job. It’s a passion to help animals in need due to human interactions. Don’t get mad at the rehabber and start yelling at them about how horrible of a person they are because they can not stop either working a job, helping somebody else with an injured animal, or caring for the animals already in their possession, to come and pick up an injured animal right in front of you.