Raccoons
Last Update - 12/29/22


Raccoon Facts
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Here are a few of our Raccoon success stories. We hope you enjoy them......

Meet "Lucy", Class of 1989

Her mother failed to return to the litter den and after several days, this little lady decided it was time to find out why. She survived the fall from the tree with no visible injuries and landed in our nursery.



Bet I could steal one and nobody'd notice.
Well, they noticed. Thank goodness for soft pillows.
Fries are to die for..
Enough with the flash already!

Lucy returned fully back to the wild and after only a few months, stopped coming back to visit.... She was a little over a year and a half old the last time we saw her.



Meet "Nanny", Class of 1990

Her mother was killed by a German Shepherd. She had a sibling, however, we only saw it once the day before we captured Nanny. We never saw it again and can only assume it didn't survive.



Ahh, Nothing Like a nap in the afternoon
I'd rather have a bottle than this salty finger.
Ok, I'll have this open in just a second.
Hey, somebody get the glasses.

Nanny was three years old the last time we saw her. Since she appeared to be in good health, we assume she fell prey to a predator or hunter. She never seemed to forget us and we were able to pet and hand feed her through the last night we saw her.....



Meet "Sissy & Scrump", Class of 1992

Their story really angers me. A smart ass young man decided he wanted Raccoons for pets so, he took these two kits from a litter den. Not only was this stupid, it could have been extremely dangerous. Now, this jerk wasn't real happy with the amount of care required to keep a raccoon, so when he had to move, he simply left these babies behind to care for themselves. Thankfully a neighbor heard them crying and called Dixie.



I'll bet I can beat you to the bottom
Nothin like chasing Grapes in a bowl.
Except maybe a big basket full of toys...
OK, a quick nap and then more playin.

We lost Sissy to Rabies only a few months after they began staying outside. We nearly lost Scrump to what appeared to be a dog attack. It took several week to get the wounds healed, but she has always been a fighter and she came back strong. Scrumpy still comes home two to three times a week unless she has a litter, then she's here every day. She has now raised four litters. I guess that makes me and Dixie, Grandpa Coon and Grandma Coon. Her litters range from three to five kits. She always brings them home when they get big enough to follow her. Last year, she had five and she managed to bring three of them inside with her to eat. The other two chose to eat on the deck.





Bird Feeders are for Birds, or are they ?! - Seems that's not the case around here.   Caught this bandit on his way down.  But we don't mind, cause this is a baby we raised and released last season.   He and a few friends have taken a liking to Black Oil Sunflower Seeds.

June 00
What do you mean, "FLY"? - Bird feeder mounts have to support the weight of a full grown raccoon, or two, around here.

June,00



*
WARNING !!The following pictures contain material that may be disturbing to some.
   
No Laughing Matter . - There's nothing funny about this.  This is the results of the actions of a lazy human.  This 14 week old baby had it's foot stuck in a Lipton Iced Tea can that had been discarded by someone.  Unfortunately, his front foot had the circulation cut off too long and the foot could not be saved.

Oct,00
He will survive.- Thanks to the wonderful efforts of Lenni Ellis, of Creatures-R-Us on Hilton Head Island, and the help of a caring Vet, this little one will live and be released.  Without the burden of the aluminum can, he will at least be able to survive in the wild.  Please, take just one minute out of your life to properly dispose of aluminum cans.   That one minute could prevent such a travesty...

Oct,00
As dangerous as it is ugly. - A simple aluminum can discarded by a human, transforms into a dangerous and crippling weapon.   This one was removed from the front leg of the second raccoon we've seen this month with a can stuck on a foot.   To the natural curiosity of a Raccoon, the hole in the top of a can is an opening to the secrets held within.

Oct,00
We saved the foot.- Fortunately, we were able to save the foot of this year old male.  The cut went to the bone in places, but the amazing healing power of the Raccoon will soon erase most of this wound.  He'll probably never get 100% of the original movement of the foot again, but at least it'll be there to help him survive when we release him back into the wild.

Oct,00



Well, as 2000 comes to a close, so does our 2000 Nursery. It gives me a great deal of pleasure to end this season on a happy note. On the morning of Wednesday, 6 December, I found this boy curled up in a pool of his own blood and almost dead in the middle of a four lane highway. He had been hit by a car about 2 hours earlier. Though I had very little hope that he'd survive, he had a will to live that was stronger than any I've ever seen. Within 48 hours, he responded to treatment and was awake, alert, and eating. Within 4 days, he was up and walking.


This is our Miracle raccoon.   Today, missing two teeth on the right side,  and still favoring his left legs, we expect him to make a full recovery and should be released back into the wild early in 2001.
I can handle this, thank you! - The mother raccoon can do a far better job of raising the babies than we can, so we definitely want to make sure she gets the chance.  Pictured here with our 5 day old Grand Baby, is one of last years orphans.  She returned home to have her kits and is doing a fine job of raising them...  Dixie and I are proud Grand Parents and feel fortunate to be able to witness this miracle of nature.  It warms our hearts to know we were able to help make it possible.  This is what makes wildlife rehabilitation so rewarding.

01 May,01
Ahhh, What a life... - Remember Arnie (short for Arnold Swartzacoon) from our 1997 Nursery?  Well, here he is today just being a lazy raccoon.  The head injury he suffered as a youngster, has left him blind in one eye and weak on his right side.  Unable to climb, he remains with us as an Unreleasable, but seems quite content to stay in the house and lounge around.

01 May,01



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