Tagged: “#wildlife rehab”

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/

Ducks, Ducks Everywhere!

Ducks, Ducks Everywhere!

Was just over a week ago we made a post about Easter animals. Well, it’s already begun. Two of these were surrendered unwanted gift pets (mallard and pekin), two others were found roaming around. Suspect released pets (pekin and crested [poof ball on head]).
Please do not buy animals as pets unless you know for certain that person actually wants one.

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

Made another video on just the rattle moving from a few different angles. Enjoy.Mario and Brandi

Posted by Nature's Edge Wildlife and Reptile Rescue on Friday, February 8, 2019

Slow Motion Rattlesnake Rattle

A quick video on a couple of prairie rattlesnakes (Crotalus viridis) we took in today. Enjoy!

Slider Turtles as Pets

Slider Turtles as Pets

We have all seen them. Those cute little red-eared sliders and yellow-bellied sliders being sold either from a roadside stand or one of those gift shops in Florida. Well this is what that cheap little $10 turtle turns into. These are both yellow-bellied turtle (Trachemys scripta scripta). Adult shell vs hatchling. The hatchling was bought and later surrendered, with a second one, when the owner realized how big they get.

Road side sellers love to tell people they will stay small if kept in a small tank. Sure, because they get sick and die before they can reach full suze.
Aquatic turtles need a minimum of 10 gallons of physical water per every inch of shell length. PER TURTLE. The more water the better. Strong filtration is a must to keep their water clean. They also need room to get out of the water and bask, as well as strong UVA/UVB lighting.
So for example, the large one would need a minimum of 160 gallons of water and a 2 foot by 2 foot area to get out and bask.
A varied diet to include live native fish is also a must. Pelleted diets can be lacking the proper nutrition. NO GOLDFISH. They do eat a lot.


Aquatic turtles as a whole can make great display pets. But they must be set up properly. Red-eared sliders and yellow-bellied sliders are the number one surrendered pet to reptile rescues. A lot of rescues have even stopped taking them in due to already having way to many of them. And no, they can not just be returned to the wild or dumped in your neighborhood pond. It is illegal to do so for a few different reasons.