Subscriber Comments for
Raccoon Baby

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COMMENT 318344	2012-09-10 01:17 PM
601: Raccoons do not spray, you are thinking of skunks.
COMMENT 317912	2012-09-09 10:41 AM
Great work JD, et al. Thank you!
COMMENT 317782P	2012-09-08 07:47 PM
The ones that we caught in my childhood home were beautiful animals indeed, but they do carry ticks, mites, fleas, and sometimes other things that our not welcome in our homes, or on our pets. My dog is not smart enough to stay away from them, even in our neighborhood, quite aways from encroaching on their natural living places. Hence I am well stocked with peroxide, Dawn dishwashing detergent, and baking soda on hand for the next time.
COMMENT 317755	2012-09-08 06:17 PM
Thank you, thank you, thank you to all those who give of their time, and give from their hearts (and wallets!), to help these creatures. It isn't so long ago that there were no rehabbers, no facilities. All of these animals that were found motherless were put down, due to no other recourse. There are still people that see all critters (raccoons, possums, skunks, coyotes, bobcats, etc) as pests, to be gassed and/or poisoned. I feel that, at long last, humans are learning that our wildlife has a right to live free from human depredation. Let us all work toward a cleaner and safer environment. I urge everyone to stop spraying yards/lawns, stop using rodenticides, stop putting out poisons. With all the info online, the safer alternatives are easily found. Let's help our wildlife, instead of harming it. Thank you, again, to all the rehabbers.
COMMENT 317733	2012-09-08 04:55 PM
632, If animals could talk, imagine what they would say about us.
ANIMALLISTNER	2012-09-08 04:29 PM
Comment 651, great point made here. We at ART, Inc can assure you and others that our wild babies remain wild. This baby was so late, out of season, and so very tiny and young. We dont keep singletons outside, alone, cold and scared. Out eam volunteers keep our babies in warm homes, where they are fed every 2-4 hours, as needed. There is NO other way to feed without the use of baby bottles and syringes. If you have any useful suggestions to help, then step up. This raccoon will soon join another outdoors in a large enslosure, with minimal human contact once old enough. The last thing any reahbber needs is a tame or imprinted, habituated wild animal. Thank you, Animal Rescue Team, Inc.
SCEPTIC	2012-09-08 03:12 PM
I understand your concern about rescue groups treating animals as wild, not pets. There are also people who breed raccoons commercially as pets.
COMMENT 317662P	2012-09-08 02:21 PM
651: Good points but infant animals, including birds, are fed by tubes, usually held by humans. I think sharing the photos (no apostrophe) encourages people to rescue wild animals; small mammals and also birds are kept with blankets or towels to keep them warm. At least for birds that I've helped with, the human scent is not a problem; they do not become bonded. There is a danger, though, of being too cute......
COMMENT 317651	2012-09-08 02:02 PM
I never understand why wildlife rehab professionals, wonderful people doing a great service for animals and the biological world, show off the orphaned young animal on human furniture eating from a baby bottle held in a bare hand. Doesn't rehab include doing all you can to keep it from recognizing humans as its feeders and keeping it wild? I thought it included keeping distance, a cover over an enclosure, masking your scent, not having it on furniture!? Not that one would go crazy and dress up in a fake striped mask, but still, these sorts of photos with no explanation mislead people into assuming it's easy and fun to raise a raccoon or other wild creature.
COMMENT 317755	2012-09-08 01:58 PM
I LOVE raccoons. They come into my yard. I hear them playing in the water I set out for them. It is a kindness, during all this recent hot weather. "My" raccoons are never a problem, but, then, I am not anal about my lawn or garden beds. I like that they eat snails. One of the most beautiful sounds in the world is hearing the mother "churring" encouragement to a little kit, when it is learning to climb trees. We have seen albino 'coons in my yard, twice. I tell people to NEVER feed the raccoons, but I (and my dogs and cat) don't mind sharing our space with them. They are wonderful.
COMMENT 317632P	2012-09-08 01:30 PM
582. Amen. I've lived in the woods and wilds long enough to know that all wildlife is not sweet and good. Baby rattlers, baby scorpions, juvenile sharks, even little bears (esp. little bears who are curious, but who have Mom around and she doesn't care if you think her baby is sweet), etc. Most babies are cute. Many grow up to be unpleasant, nuisance adults -- humans as well as "wild" animals.
COMMENT 317782P	2012-09-08 12:41 PM
I recently had a surprise encounter with a fully grown, really, really cute raccoon while out walking the dog . They are not afraid of much as this one came after us as we beat a hasty retreat. Have heard that they can really wreak havoc on one's garden and lawns.
COMMENT 317582	2012-09-08 12:11 PM
lmao all wildlife is sweet and good hahahaha
COMMENT 317578P	2012-09-08 12:02 PM
So true, 572. Thanks ART!!
COMMENT 317572	2012-09-08 11:53 AM
569, they are always sweet things. All wildlife is sweet and good. They only become pests when our lives intersect. Like plants are only weeds when they grow where WE don't want them to grow. We all need to remember that we SHARE this earth. I'm so grateful to groups like ART who give these animals a second chance at a wild life.
COMMENT 317569	2012-09-08 11:49 AM
Sweet little thing... for now. :)

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