LAUGHINGGULL'S
WILDLIFE REHAB PAGE
1998 CRITTERS


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April - Possums


 

 This year was the year of the possum. I  received a litter of four in April and another in May.  The toughest part is bottle feeding and weaning.  Some are fussy eaters, others eat anything.

Have no problem handling them up to a certain age, then they turn.  All of a sudden they growl and hiss at you whenever you come near.  It really gets interesting the closer you get to release time.
These four came to me after their mother was killed on the road.  A policeman found them running around the road in Queensbury and helped me catch them.  They were eating on their own but still not able to make it without mom.  I had them about two months.  Hardly ever saw them as they only come out at night.
This is a picture from when I released them.  They seemed terrified, but it was time.  They need to be between 8 and 12 inches long not including the tail before they're ready to be on their own. At this size they can be pretty scary.

 
May - Possums

This is the other litter of four.  Their  mother was attacked by a skunk.

November - Pileated Woodpecker

This female flew into a window and knocked herself out.  She also dislocated her clavicle.  The vet took an X-ray and prescribed cage rest.  She did a number on my cage pecking holes in the wood.  These guys obviously need special caging.

RED SQUIRRELS
Baby to adult
Fawn. . . This was my first fawn. He came in May - found running in traffic in a brutal storm.  I''m not set up for fawns but I took this one in as it was an emergency situation and fortunately found a better home for him the next day. Very friendly critters. It's extremely hard to raise them without getting them too used to humans.  And that will only get them in trouble after release.  I understand the easiest way to raise them is with adoptive mother goats. 

 
I learned how much work a little fawn could be just having him overnight in my extra bedroom.  Taking care of a fawn is a full time summer job.  Once you make the commitment you can't be away from home more than 6 hours at a time when they're young.  It's hard to find a baby-sitter if you want to go away for the weekend.

AUGUST 
GREAT BLUE HERON
at Port Jerry marina

 I got a call on a Saturday from a marina located in Northwest Bay on Lake George.  They had a great blue heron at their docks, tangled up in fishing line.  When I got there the folks who called had rescued the bird and snipped off the fish line.  They said they found the hook and sinker.

I brought the bird home hoping after a day's rest I could set it free.  I've never taken a bird of this size before.  I just got a cage big enough for it this year and didn't have the cage near ready but I couldn't think of another rehabber in the area who could take it.

A trip to the vet revealed the bird had an injury in its mouth (probably the hook) and possibly a broken wing.  My costs started to rise for this fellow's care so I started to fundraise a bit.  Another first for me.
Although I had expected a very temperamental and nervous bird, I found this one not too bad to work with.  He (or she) got used to me intruding on him, which in this case was good since I had to give it antibiotics twice a day.  Of course it always fought me when I tried to catch it.  That's one way I could tell it was getting better.  It was harder to catch each time.  I think it was a young bird.  It was about 36 inches tall.  A full grown one is about 52 inches. An X-ray revealed no break in the wing.  I kept him on antibiotics about two weeks and he healed up real well.  I set him free in a wetland near my home, not far from where he came from but a better protected area so he could get the strength back in his wings.  He flew a short distance when we left him so I'm hopeful he made the transition back into the wild successfully.