Our Masked Visitor

Early this week, after lunch was eaten on the patio, and the children had left some crumbs and half-eaten sandwiches behind, a young raccoon appeared out of the rain to clean up.

He returned later in the day and I noticed that he was not putting any weight on one foot. It had obviously sustained a serious injury. I began searching the internet to try to find some sort of local wildlife rescuers. What I came up with were a bunch of dead links and disconnected phone numbers. Finally, I was able to reach Lynda of Sky Harbor, who gave us Laurie’s number.

Over the next day and a half we spent time slowly gaining the raccoon’s trust by continually feeding him (we were told he would like marshmallows….and already knew he like peanut butter). We moved the food closer to, and eventually into a cat cage. He was smart though! He would grab the food and run back out of the cage!

One of the boys had the brilliant idea of running a line of marshmallows on a skewer through the holes on one side of the cage through the other, so he’d have no choice but to stop and eat his meal, in the cage. Finally, by Wednesday morning, the coon had grown comfortable enough inside the cage that we were able to spring the trap — a rope had been tied to the front of the cage door, through one of the holes, and leading under our back door, so at the golden opportunity, we could give a little tug and Voila!

He was NOT happy with his entrapment. Feisty little fella! We carried the cute little critter to the car and rushed to meet Laurie at a nearby gas station. She took possession of him and got him to the vet for treatment.

We called her later to check on his prognosis.

• BOTH back legs were broken! — one will likely never be able to be used again.
• His injuries were consistent with having been hit by a car
• His injuries were TWO WEEKS OLD! (Can you imagine this poor little guy hobbling around on two broken legs for two weeks?!)
• He was determined to be a male of about 5 months of age
• He has been named “Turbo” because he is so feisty
• Due to the extent of his injuries, Turbo is unable to be released back into the wild, and will spend the rest of his days at the wildlife facility run by Laurie and her husband.

I visited the website of the facility, Florida Wildlife Alternatives, and was very touched by what I read. Laurie, and her husband Al have made it their life’s mission to care for injured and orphaned wildlife of all kinds. Their goal is to rehabilitate and release, but in some cases (such as “Turbo’s”) it isn’t possible to be released. In these cases, Laurie and Al are committed to provided longterm (as in lifetime) care.

What an incredible service they are providing! And it touches my heart to see other people with such hearts for wildlife. (I have a special place in my heart for raccoons especially, after, as I young child, watching my older brother raise an abandoned raccoon from the age of a few days old to adulthood. These are magnificent creatures).

An appeal:  Florida Wildlife Alternatives is a non-profit organization. They get no government funding. The care of the animals is provided entirely “out of pocket”, and with private donations. If you wish to donate to this facility (tax deductible), you will be helping to make a difference in the lives of Turbo and other animals like him.

Although donations of cash are always helpful, there are other ways you can help as well. There is a wish list on the website detailing some of their needs, including such items as:

• 2 x 4s
• chain link fencing
• gift cards from various places
• dog and cat food
• peanuts
• white bread
• marshmallows
• certain types of baby food and animal formulas
• pet carriers and cages
• plastic sandboxes
• bird houses/bird feeders
• small stuffed animals

For more info, contact: