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I've found an orphaned or injured animal, what can I do t help? Is there a problem if a nocturnal animal is out during the day or appears friendly? Coexisting with Wildlife - Prevent unwanted visitors Why won't live-trapping and relocation work? Passive & Active Discouragement Something's digging up my yard! Should I be concerned about rabies? Tracking Bats with Doppler Radar
Species Articles 9 Banded Armadillo - the Texas Tank
Rehab and Rescue success story When Raccoons Fall Through the Ceiling
I've found an orphaned animal, what can I do to help? The most important thing to do if you find a baby wild animal is to make sure it truly is an orphan!! Wild animals are extremely good parents and many times well meaning rescuers pick up and whisk away healthy youngsters while their parents watch.
If a young animal is truly orphaned or injured, it needs prompt attention. Call Wildlife Rehab & Education 713-861-WILD as soon as possible. If it is after hours, there is supportive care that can be given until the animal can be transported to the Wildlife Center. Keep reading for your exact situation.
Unless the baby is wet, cold, injured, covered with ants, fly eggs, maggots or is very weak simply observe it at a distance for a time. The baby needs to be kept warm, do not bring the baby into the air conditioning unless you place it in a box, on a heating pad set on LOW. DO NOT FEED OR WATER THE ANIMAL! Great harm can come to an animal that is fed the wrong food, at the wrong time or the wrong way.
Hypothermia (becoming too cold) is life threatening, quick action should be taken to warm the animal. Almost all wildlife, with the notable exception of the opossum, have internal temperatures that are higher than ours and because of their small body mass chill easily. Put the baby in a box or animal carrier that is large enough for it to stand up and move around a little bit. If a heating pad (set on low) is not available, dry uncooked rice can be placed in a sock and heated for 30 – 45 seconds in a microwave. When using an external heat source, check the animal frequently to prevent overheating. Place the animal in a quiet warm place. If the animal is being kept outdoors, it needs to be in the shade. Keeping it in a closed garage or screened in porch will prevent flies from laying eggs on it.
Nestling birds have little to no feathers and still need a parent's body temperature to keep warm. Often the baby can be put back into the nest or into a hanging basket or bucket to protect them from dogs and cats and the parent will continue to bring food to the baby. Don’t forget to put holes in the bottom of the container to prevent drowning should it rain. It is NOT true that the parent will abandon the baby if touched by humans – birds will not reject the nestling or fledgling even if they see it being handled by a rescuer. Be sure to monitor the baby, if Mom doesn’t return or the baby appears to become weak, get help quickly.
Fledgling birds spend hours or days on the ground while learning to fly and are supplemented with food from their parents. This is normal especially with mockingbirds and blue jays. If the baby has wing feathers and a stubby tail, it's supposed to be on the ground learning to fly. Place it in a tall bush or small tree and keep pets away from the area. Look for injuries such as a broken wing or leg - symmetry is a wonderful thing, you don't have to know bird anatomy to know that one wing is being held dramatically different than the other. Also look for the presence of fly eggs or maggots. Fly eggs look like clumps of small yellow rice grains. The whole body should be checked for fly eggs since they will be laid on any broken skin or body opening (eyes, ear, nose or cloaca).
Purple Martins and other birds that live in houses can be infested with mites, especially if the house hasn't been thoroughly cleaned the previous winter. If babies repeatedly jump out of the house before they are physically ready, the problem could be mites. Be very careful with your selection of insecticide, 1% rotenone powder or pyrethrin spray are known to be safe for wild birds. Sevin dust is also safe when used in the small amounts as specified on the label.
Young mammals may appear lost and alone while they explore or wait for parents to return from foraging for food nearby. This is especially true for deer and rabbits who intentionally do not remain with their baby(ies) during the day. Each time the mom returns from foraging, she leaves another scent trail that could be potentially lead a predator to the nest. In addition, her stronger scent could also lead predators to her baby(ies). So, as the baby gets older and can go longer between nursing, she spends more and more time nearby, but not with her offspring.
The short answer is no. State if not federal laws protect most of our birds and mammals. All of our predator birds are protected. This protection includes but is not limited to harassment, physical bodily injury and death. It is illegal, again at the state level for most mammals and the federal level for most birds to physically interact with wildlife without the proper permits or licenses. Even wildlife that is legal to hunt, require a license and are protected out of season. If you have a problem with a wild animal or bird, or have a question, WR&E has the necessary permits and work under the auspices of a state and federally recognized wildlife organizations.
Is there a problem if a nocturnal animal is out during the day or appears friendly? Nocturnal doesn't mean that the animal only comes out at night. Unless there are other odd behaviors, the animal is probably just fine. While nocturnal animals are usually shy and elusive, this does not mean that the animal will not exhibit curiosity about our activities. All omnivores and carnivores, furred and feathered will exhibit curiosity about changes in their environment. Hanging out at the edge of the light, sitting on the top of the fence or in the case of raccoons, peering into windows is not and should not be considered aggressive behavior. However, if you discover an adult wild animal that is easily approachable or appears “tame” or “friendly”, it has a SERIOUS problem. Do not mistake this presentation as “friendly” – extreme caution should be used! Wearing protective gloves, throw a blanket or towel over the animal and gently push the animal into a cardboard box, cover and tape the box closed. . Call Wildlife Rehab & Education 713-861-WILD as soon as possible. If you suspect distemper or rabies, your local Animal Control should be contacted. DO NOT FEED OR WATER THE ANIMAL!
Prevent unwanted houseguests
The first thing to remember is that the wildlife isn’t moving in “just for the fun of it”. They would much rather find suitable homes elsewhere, but because we have taken their land and built our houses, they often no longer have that luxury. The solution is often as easy as providing suitable substitute housing for them and making it harder for them to move into yours.
Semiannual maintenance should be performed on your home in the spring and fall, inspect for and repair any exterior holes that permit wildlife access into the house. Use binoculars to check eaves and rooflines. All such openings should be securely closed.
If the intruder is a squirrel or raccoon, standard measures will not be enough. Squirrels will gnaw a new hole nearby, so the patch needs to be much larger than the hole. Raccoons have 2-inch long crowbars (also known as claws); teeth that can cut wire and jaws can bite through a broom handle in one chomp. Nothing less than welded wire hardware cloth and lots of screws (not nails) will keep out this determined visitor.
Use expanding foam to seal around pipe and electrical penetrations – a mouse only needs a hole one-half the size of a dime to gain access. DO NOT block the weep holes in your brick, they aren’t big enough for adult animals and if the brick is not allowed to “breathe” you will have a much bigger problem on your hands – mold. DO check the weep holes for evidence of insects, especially ants. Check the foundation for little dirt tunnels that rise to the weep holes or cracks in the brick, as these are evidence of termites.
Replace all damaged siding, trim and soffits, especially areas that are softened by dry rot. There may not be a hole today, but weakened wood is a prime entry point. If you can't get the wood replaced immediately, consider covering the area with welded wire hardware cloth.
Cap your chimney and /or keep the flue closed when not it use. A closed flue is all that is necessary to keep “guests” out of your house. One of our rehabbers enjoyed the swallows that nested in the chimney of their last house. They felt that the racket (sometimes loud enough to drown out the TV) was small payment for the privilege of hosting another generation of ‘skeeter eaters. However, the next owner didn’t share their opinion and promptly capped the chimney. In addition to birds, raccoons and squirrels have been known to take up residence in chimneys.
To prevent an animal from gaining access to your roof, prune trees so they don’t over hang the house. It is recommended that a horizontal distance of 10 feet and a vertical distance of 15 feet should be maintained. Pay special attention to landscaping near the house, crepe myrtle or a lattice of climbing vine can provide an excellent ladder, be sure to trim back enough that it isn’t an easy jump to the eaves.
Pet doors will give access to wildlife. They can learn to use a pet door as easily as Fido and Fluffy. If you really need a pet door, consider a door that will open only for a special collar, which is worn by the pet.
Opossums, raccoons, mice, rats (ugh) and to a lesser extent rabbits and squirrels feel that their job is to clean up their environment. We don’t know if they love us for being so messy or they lament that their work is never done – but either way, they are quite good at cleaning up any food they find. So the first step in discouraging foraging behavior is to make sure that there is nothing to forage. This means that trash cans need tight fitting / locking tops – no self-respecting possum or coon could pass such a huge “ mess” and not “clean” it up. Additionally, cat and dog food must be pulled up before dusk.
Each of us have our own tolerance for wildlife; fur is fine but scales are scary or yuck, feathers are OK but not grackles or crows, if it has more than 4 legs or none at all – all bets are off. Whether or not you are a fan of wildlife or not, we must remember that we moved into their home – not the other way around. We must respect their rights; perhaps ameliorate the impact of our presence - but we don’t have to tolerate the wildlife moving into our homes.
So what to do? Well it depends – first of all it is a good idea to provide appropriate shelter – outside! That way your home doesn’t start looking good. Or provide shelter for the predator of the animal or pest.
Next, find the locations where the animals are getting in. Remember, most animals need a hole only large enough to accommodate their skulls. Plan how you are going to close the holes and buy the materials – but don’t use them yet. First, you need to make sure that no one is home – even more important, make sure that there are no babies.
If your visitors didn’t move in until the spring or summer, you can bet there are babies. At this point you have two choices; be patient and allow Mom to raise her babies and move out or call a Wildlife specialist, such as the rehabbers at Wildlife Rehab and Education, who can help you find something that will make your attic less attractive. Often you can “encourage” Mom to move her babies to a place that is less bright or loud.
If you are inclined to attract wildlife by providing food and water – it is a huge responsibility. Responsibility? Yes responsibility! Once you begin feeding the birds or other animals, you must continue for two reasons. First, easy access to food encourages the females to lay more eggs and birth more babies; therefore they will need more energy to support these babies. A Mom with babies needs the continued food support more than ever. Insect eating birds are harder because it’s hard to hold back the insecticide when our plantings are being attacked. But you can’t attract the insect eating birds if there are no insects to eat. The second reason is that some birds may delay or decide not to migrate because food is plentiful. The mammals will have produced a population that may or may not be supportable without the supplemental food. Either way, you have birds and/or mammals that will starve during the winter.
Another consideration is that wild animals are WILD. They are unpredictable and you must be prepared for the consequences. Just like the bears in Yellowstone Park, mammals can become aggressive when the food doesn’t come fast enough or in large enough quantities. Even squirrels that have accepted hand feeding can bite or scratch the next time you offer food. To prevent bites and scratches, don’t hand feed. In fact, it is a good idea to put out the food BEFORE your diners arrive.
One last word about attracting wildlife with food and water. A common feeding location can spread disease and parasites. Birdfeeders and birdbaths must be kept scrupulously clean because both can harbor mold, fungi and parasites. A single raccoon with distemper can infect everyone else that frequents the feeding location.
Minimize conflict between the species by providing a squirrel-proof bird feeder (metal with a pressure sensitive perch hung from a Shepherd's hook) and dedicated squirrel feeder. Squirrels prefer striped sunflower seed and most birds prefer the oil sunflower seed.
Resist cutting down dead trees in your back yard. We're not asking you to ruin your landscaping with an eyesore, but because a rehabber wouldn’t let her husband cut down a small dead pine tree, they were treated to a family of woodpeckers. It was early spring and she was hoping a house wren would take up residence. Instead, she had frequent close encounters with a pair of redheaded woodpeckers. Attracted by the bugs, the woodpeckers decided that the birdhouse on the dead pine would make a wonderful home. They proceeded to enlarge the opening and moved right in. Because woodpeckers cannot perch like other birds – the gymnastics necessary to grab a peanut from the bird feeder is quite a show, second only to a squirrel trying to beat a “squirrel-proof” bird feeder.
Minimize the use of insecticides. You will have to be willing to accept increased insect damage before nature kicks in to restore balance. If absolutely necessary, spray only the affected areas of each plant. This is very hard to remember when bag-worms swarm your trees. However, birds and wasps feed on them. While the webs and denuded branches are ugly, healthy trees will not suffer permanent damage. If you really, really hate bag-worms, consider that wasps use the worms as a living food source for their larvae. Well, living until the eggs hatch and begin to feed. Ladybugs love to gobble aphids. Live ladybugs will be available for purchase at garden centers in the spring.
Mulch flowerbeds to hold water and inhibit weeds; consider using a pre-emergent, which stops the germination of seeds, instead of herbicide. Try to limit the amount of fertilizer placed on the lawn; it washes into the creeks and causes algae blooms. Algae blooms rob the water of oxygen, causing fish kills. Instead of frequent lawn fertilization, purchase a mulching blade for your lawnmower. A mulching blade will cut the grass fine enough to avoid the “snow drifts of dry brown cuttings.” The cuttings contain exactly the correct nutrients your lawn needs to be healthy – don’t bag and dispose of that free fertilizer.
Provide bat houses to encourage bats to take up residence. They will make a huge dent in the mosquito and moth populations. What? You like the moths – well the small ones preferred by bats wreck serious damage in the caterpillar stage (can you say bag worms?).
Unfortunately, you can’t slap up a house and expect to get bats. They are very particular about just about every aspect of their homes. Bat Conservation International has devoted themselves to finding out what makes one house desirable or not. They can be found on the web at: www.Batcon.org
Why won't live-trapping and relocation work? Nature abhors a vacuum. Trap 100 raccoons and 102 will move back in. Trap a species to the point that it drops below a critical level and the females will have more litters per year. In addition, the litters become larger. A territory attractive to animals will not be left vacant for long. Obviously trapping and relocation will not work in the long run, so what are you supposed to do?
Passive Discouragement First, you have to take responsibility for conditions that encourage wildlife to move onto your property and into your home. Everything in life involves accommodation and understanding, your relationship with the environment is no exception. If you want to minimize visiting wildlife try the following suggestions. In your yard, keep grass neatly trimmed, clear brush and clutter, tightly cover woodpiles, trim tree limbs which overhang your roof, remove trellises and trim bushes to a height that is at least three feet below your eaves, and use welded wire to exclude animals from under the deck.
In short, remove places to hide and limit access to your house. Carefully inspect your home for damaged eaves and soffit vents, check all wood siding for damage and dry rot. Make the necessary repairs. Do not intentionally feed the wildlife, even the birds since lots of wildlife are attracted to feeders and spilled seed. Do not unintentionally feed the wildlife by leaving pet food out overnight. Special care must be taken with gardens and fruit trees, pick ripe fruit promptly and clear windfall regularly.
Remember, whatever made your yard or home attractive to the original animal will make it attractive to the replacement. In many cases, the solution is to leave the animal unmolested.
Active discouragement Once you have modified you home and yard to make them less desirable, it’s time for some active discouragement. Use a light with a motion detector; better yet try an infrared/motion detector that is attached to a sprinkler to spray the animal with water. Fence the yard with electric fencing; you will need multiple strands to prevent scooting under or jumping over. If you already have a wooden fence, you will need a strand at the bottom and along the top. Fence the garden with a flimsy chicken wire fence that won’t support the animal’s weight. Angle the fence slightly outward to keep the animal from crushing the fence inward and climbing right in.
Each animal will have its own level of sensitivity to irritants; good choices include mothballs, ammonia soaked cotton balls (best placed in a dish), cayenne pepper, finely ground black pepper and other commercially available dog and cat repellants. RopelTM is a good choice. Keep trying until you find the right one, and then be prepared to swap to something else as the original animal becomes accustomed to the irritant or someone new wanders in.
The animal that is most frequently live-trapped is the lowly opossum. Why? We're not sure. They are wonderfully beneficial and have very few bad habits. Don’t like snakes, especially poisonous snakes? Then don’t evict the opossum; it is eating the snakes that would otherwise be living there. A opossum call usually goes something like this:
I have a opossum under my deck and I want it trapped and taken away.
Why do you want to get rid of it, what’s it doing?
Well, it’s not doing anything except driving the dog crazy. Besides it’s a big, ugly, nasty rat like thing and I just want it GONE!
Wow! O.K., first, let me give you some reasons why you should be happy there’s a opossum under your deck, and then if you still want to relocate it I’ll help you do that. It’s under your deck for a reason, probably because it feels safe and there’s plenty of prey either under there with it or very close by. Do you have a problem with snakes or mice?
Well.......no.
Great! The opossum is doing its job. If you relocate it, there will be no one there to eat the opossum’s prey. In addition to snakes and mice it eats lots of insects, especially grubs, so you could also have increased plant damage.
But it’s incredibly ugly and looks like it could be carrying a host of diseases.
Yes, I agree they’re exceptionally ugly. However, opossums are very clean animals even if they have a coat that often looks unwashed. Like cats, they are constantly cleaning themselves. As for disease, their body temperature is slightly lower than other mammals and it is believed that while they might occasionally fall prey to an illness, they do not transmit disease.
Sometimes I see it out in the middle of the day, doesn’t that mean that it’s sick?
Probably not. Nocturnal doesn’t mean that they never come out during the day. Young animals are often seen out exploring and adults will sometimes shift feeding time if they learn the cat food is only available during the morning.
Well, it sometimes scares me when I go into my backyard, it shows me every tooth in its mouth and hisses at me. It stands its ground and is so aggressive I just know it’s going to bite me one day.
Despite the fact that the opossum’s defense display is ferocious, it almost never attacks. Instead, it runs or “plays dead”. The fainting reflex (which can last an hour or more) is often accompanied by the release of a musk like substance that makes it smell dead too.
A couple more questions may follow and at that point, the caller usually decides to let the opossum remain under the deck, or they are too embarrassed to admit that they still want it gone. I prefer to believe that they are going to coexist happily ever after.
For additional information click here to see the Winter 2007 Online Newsletter link for an interesting opossum article.
Raccoons are our problem children. The problem is that God gave them too much dexterity to go with their superior brainpower and insatiable curiosity. The triple whammy of intelligence, dexterity and curiosity make them a difficult animal to deal with effectively. Raccoon problems usually cannot be solved in a day, so prevention is the key to dealing with nuisance raccoons. Please note the word “nuisance”, the goal is not to rid your end of the world of raccoons (or any other animal), the goal is to manage them in such a way that conflict is minimized.
Raccoons can remove nuts from bolts and strong enough to turn on the water spigot should they be so inclined. Remember baby proofing your house? Well, coon proofing your house and yard will require that the same mindset and perseverance. For more help see Why won't live-trapping and relocation work? Passive & Active Discouragement
Garbage can lids are a piece of cake for an inquisitive raccoon, secure by running a rope or bungee from one handle to the other, make sure you pass it through the handle on the lid. To prevent toppling of the can, place the can in some kind of anchored rack or tie it to the fence.
If they are raiding an ornamental goldfish pond, provide the fish adequate shelter by sinking two or more concrete blocks or chimney liners in the deep end.
The most panicked phone calls often involve snakes. Should you find the skin of a snake, first check to see if the snake is poisonous. How? The number of belly plates will tell you. If there is a single belly plate then there is no reason to be concerned, the snake in non-poisonous. It is doing you a favor by ridding your yard of mice, rats and other small animals.
If the snake has two belly plates, it is better to be safe than sorry, please exercise caution until the fate of the snake is known. There are not many snakes that den in one area for extended periods of time, so by the time you notice the skin it has probably already moved on. If it hasn’t, the snake can be encouraged to move on by exposing the hiding area or shining bright lights into the area. To make sure that the snake has moved on, spread baby powder, flour or cornstarch around where the skin was found and other likely hiding spots. In the morning you should be able to see if a snake has crossed the area.
O.K., so what if you see a snake instead of having a skin to examine at your leisure? Almost everyone knows that poisonous snakes have a triangular head; the shape is necessary to accommodate the venom sacs. The glaring exception to this rule is the coral snake; a rhyme will help you decide if the snake is a coral snake imitator or the real deal. Red against yellow kill a fellow, red against black venom lack.
A good trait to look for is the size of the body with respect to its tail. You probably never thought of a snake having a tail, but it does. For the typical two-foot snake, the last two to four inches will be the tail. Poisonous snakes (with the exception of the coral) have a thick heavy body that sharply tapers to a skinny tail. Non-poisonous snakes have bodies that taper seamlessly to the tail. Don’t let size fool you, even very young venomous snakes and full grown pygmy rattlesnakes can inflict a serious wound.
One important exception to the heavy bodied snake being poisonous rule is the eastern hognose. The hognose is a very beneficial snake that imitates venomous snakes just like the scarlet and king snake imitates the coral snake. The head is more triangular than other non-poisonous snakes, but the head gently slopes back to the neck whereas the a poisonous snake’s angles sharply to the neck. The hognose is easily identified by its turned up nose.
If it is determined that the snake is poisonous, it needs to be relocated or encouraged to move on. If the snake is in the open, use a broom to gently herd the snake out of and away from the house or garage. Snakes do not like the feel of bristles. A rattlesnake can only strike a distance equal to half its length, so a broom will keep you far enough away for safety. If the snake needs to be relocated, a trashcan or large plastic container with a well fitting lid are good choices.
Snakes feed primarily on rodents. Discourage them by making your home and yard rodent-free. Alteration of the habitat will be the most successful way to reduce rodents. Leaf litter, lumber, trash and rock piles should be removed to reduce hiding places. In addition, all possible sources of food for the rodents should be removed. Encourage predators by erecting a hawk pole.
If someone is digging in the lawn, it is looking for grubs and worms. Beneficial nematodes are a good non-toxic way to kill the grubs; see your nursery for advice. To curb digging (works for dogs too) lay welded wire fencing (also known as hardware cloth) flat on the problem area and secure with long U-shaped stakes. The grass will quickly grow through to hide it and it is safe to mow over.
While there is no reason to fear the presence of wildlife or "vector species", rabies is a fatal disease. Thanks to the mass vaccination of dogs and cats beginning in the 1960's, rabies is now rare. But despite being rare, it still is fatal. The good news is that there is an effective vaccination program that will prevent the onset of rabies if given prior to symptoms emerging, the bad news is that most people still believe that it is an extremely gruesome painful process. Nothing can be further from the truth. Rehabilitators that routinely work with high risk species undergo pre-exposure vaccination which involves 3 vaccinations over a 3 or 4 week period. The 1 ml injection is given into the deltoid (upper arm) muscle, feels like and has side-effects similar to a flu shot. If it has been determined that post-exposure vaccination is necessary, it involves a single shot of Human Rabies Immune Globulin which is partially injected at the bite site and the remainder is usually placed in the gluteus muscle and 5 of the same vaccines given for pre-exposure over the next 4 weeks.
For assistance regarding rabies prevention and control, contact your local health department, a Zoonosis Control regional office, your state Department of State Health Services, State Zoonosis Control or Infectious Disease Control Unit or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov
The rabies virus is present in saliva and cerebrospinal fluid, it is not present in stool, blood, urine or skunk spray. An exposure is considered to be a bite (or scratch) which breaks the skin or the exposure of a fresh wound to saliva or cerebrospinal fluid. If possible the animal involved must be isolated or tested for rabies. All suspected exposures must be reported to the appropriate Public Health Professional. If post-exposure vaccination is deemed necessary, the sooner it is initiated the better the outcome. It is usually acceptable to wait up to 72 hours to allow for testing of the animal. THE BIG EXCEPTION INVOLVES BATS - see below.
Bats are not filthy or crawling with vermin, in fact they are among the cleanest of animals and are exceptionally resistant to disease. Rabid bats will not attack; all mammals can contract rabies, yet less than one-half of one percent of bats are affected. Even sick bats are typically non-aggressive and will bite only if handled. Simply DO NOT HANDLE BATS and you will avoid exposure to rabies or any other disease.
However, because bats can inflict bites that are not obvious, any person that is found to be sleeping in the same room in which a bat was found or seen or has handled a live or dead bat should be considered to be exposed. The bat MUST be sent for rabies testing if at all possible. The exposed person should consult with Public Health Professionals as soon as possible. If post-exposure vaccination is deemed necessary, the sooner it is initiated the better the outcome.
Misconceptions about bats abound and account for their poor reputation. Bats don’t “buzz” humans and get caught in our hair, their eyesight is as good as other mammals; additionally they use echolocation to detect objects as fine as a human hair in complete darkness, which makes catching bats for research purposes difficult.
Bats will not drive away birds located in nearby houses. Because birds and bats typically hunt different insects at different times of day they make great neighbors. Bats need our help to counter habitat destruction; they are exceptionally vulnerable because they are the slowest reproducing mammals on earth for their size. Bats are very attentive mothers, giving birth to only a single pup each year.
Provide bat houses to encourage bats to take up residence. They will make a huge dent in the mosquito and moth populations. What? You like the moths – well the small ones preferred by bats wreck serious damage in the caterpillar stage (can you say bag worms?).
Unfortunately, you can’t slap up a house and expect to get bats. They are very particular about just about every aspect of their homes. Bat Conservation International has devoted themselves to finding out what makes one house desirable or not. They can be found on the web at: www.Batcon.org
Tracking bats with Doppler radar
The U. S. Weather Service got quite a shock when it turned on its new Doppler radar located in New Braunfels (a few miles from Bracken Cave), not only did the radar track meteorological phenomenon, but it showed an ever expanding cloud as the bats emerged from Bracken Cave. The radar can document the dispersal of the bats as well as their altitudes and directions. In conjunction with other research tools, researchers have discovered that the Mexican Free Tail Bats sometimes fly at 10,000 feet to feed or catch tailwinds that carry them over long distances at speeds of more than 60 miles per hour. The densest aggregations were recorded at altitudes of 600 to 3,200 feet.
It is estimated that the 20 million bats in Bracken Cave consume 200 tons of insects per night! The most common bats in our area are the Mexican Free Tail, the Big Brown and the Eastern Pipestrelle. All of these bats are larger than the little brown bat who can consume 1,200 mosquitoes per HOUR. Think what a couple of small bat colonies could do to our mosquito population!
We haven’t had a serious coyote problem until a few years ago, so why are we having problems now? In a word, habitat destruction. (I guess that’s really two words, but who’s counting) We are subject to increases in wildlife due to habitat destruction as land is bulldozed clean for new neighborhoods. Our creeks and bayous support the wildlife’s existence and act as their super-highways. All of our predators are shy and elusive, preferring to keep a distance from humans. However, when faced with a domestic animal of the right size which has no prey instinct as opposed to wary and skittish rabbits and rats which are much more difficult to catch – even a shy coyote or bobcat will occasionally take the easy meal. I can say in confidence that they will take the “occasional” easy meal because otherwise there would be no free roaming domestic animals under 20 pounds.
So what can be done? The good news and the bad news is not much. The population of predators and prey will level itself out if we don’t interfere. Fortunately, there are some concrete steps that you can take to make sure that your pet doesn’t fall prey to coyotes.
First and foremost, move your pets indoors. If your animal is less than 20 pounds in weight or is sick or weak don’t let it out of the house alone at night, ditto for very early morning. Instead, take a cup of coffee out on the porch to enjoy while Fido gets some exercise. Your presence and a couple of floodlights are enough to keep your pet from looking like dinner.
DO NOT leave food out overnight for your animals to eat. Even finicky eaters will learn to eat during the brief window of opportunity if you put the food out for only a couple of hours a day.
Cats who have been allowed to roam are more difficult to move indoors. With some patience and a pair of earplugs (for you, not the cat) most cats will adjust to life inside.
If you and your cat can’t seem to make this transition, there are a few things you can still do to mitigate the risk. Keep the cat indoors from dusk until an hour or so past dawn. This can be accomplished by feeding the cat once a day (really smelly special stuff at first) INDOORS an hour prior to dusk and keeping it indoors until morning. It will yell and scream at first or skip some meals because it doesn’t want to come in, but an empty tummy is your best friend. You still run some risk, but at least the animal is protected during the night.
If you and your cat cannot come to any indoor accommodation, then you need to feed your cat once a day in the morning. The food should be put out when you wake up and removed when you go to work or an hour later, whichever is sooner. You must accept the risk that the animal might disappear or be eaten by a predator.
A wooden fence (chain link can be easily climbed) that is at least 5 feet high will also discourage coyotes. Yes, the coyote can dig under, but remember that it is basically lazy and will go elsewhere for an easier meal. If you do not want to fence your whole backyard, fence a small area off of the back door for Fido’s use.
When raccoons fall through the ceiling
One of the greatest joys for a wildlife animal rehabilator is the successful reunion of a mother and her babies. Lots of books have been written about living in peace with the local wildlife. Even how to foster an environment to encourage wildlife without having them wreck YOUR home and eating all of your landscaping.
However, little has been written about how to get the local wildlife out of your house once they have moved in or what to do with a separated youngster.
The original call came in about 8 a.m. The condensed version was: “Two raccoons, a very small one and a slightly larger one had fallen though the suspended ceiling of the “basement” and that there was at least one more still “up there”, what am I supposed to do?” They had already called Animal Control and were now afraid that the animals would be destroyed.
Luckily for them AND the raccoons, Friendswood Animal Control works closely with WR&E. I told them not to worry and to accept the live trap that was on the way. Trapping and relocating an adult raccoon is a death sentence, only 10% will survive the next 6 months. If the raccoon is a female with babies, it is often a death sentence for them as well. Needless to say, relocation was not in the cards for this coon family.
The next call went like this; “We caught the smaller of the two and put it in a cat carrier, now what?” Hoping that the live trap would catch the mother, who was still thought to be in the office, I sent them off to buy the supplies necessary to close up the spot where the raccoon had gained entrance. Nothing short of welded wire and nice long screws will foil a determined raccoon.
The next call was slightly panicked, something was still in the ceiling, but the trap was empty and the larger of the two coons was missing. They couldn’t imagine how she could have gotten back into the ceiling. Where could she possibly be? They might not have been able to imagine it, but I could. These guys spend large portions of each day in the trees, they may look clumsy, but are in fact excellent climbers.
They were also very concerned that the captured baby was suffering from hunger, dehydration or injured – could they bring it to me? Because it is very hard for people unfamiliar with the development of raccoons to gauge the age or weight, and because once the eyes are open and the baby is walking in a coordinated manner it is hard for me to figure it out from descriptions, I told them to bring it right over.
Mother and son arrived with a soft-sided cat carrier stuffed with towels, the “little baby” hiding within. Since raccoons can inflict serious damage after about 5 or 6 weeks of age, I donned my leather gloves and began to pick through the nest of towels looking for a gray bundle of fur. As I teased out the last of the towels, I was greeted by a burst of gray fur and vocalizations that would make a B-grade movie monster proud. Needless to say, mother and son were shocked by the apparent violence.
Unfazed, I removed the leather gloves and donned gauntlets before delving into the cat carrier again. A healthy scrapping nine to ten-week old male emerged – twisting and turning, hissing, spitting, clawing, growling and screaming. In short, he made the first encounter look like a love-fest.
By now the mother and her son’s eyes are as big as saucers and they were wondering whether I was killing the baby or whether the baby was going to kill me. Smiling, I began the process of evaluating the baby’s physical condition. Pronouncing the baby healthy, I sent them home with the baby in an airline carrier.
Raccoons are awesome mothers. Baby coons (up to five or six months of age) stay close to her on excursions. They will remain in close proximity and under her protection for almost a year. When Mommy isn’t nearby, babies stick close to each other. The plan was to place the carrier in the shade to attract Mommy Coon. I figured that Mommy Coon would retrieve the other baby from the ceiling and hang close until this baby was released from the carrier.
The next phone call informed me that they thought that the weather was too hot for the baby and they had placed it in the office / storeroom. They promised to place it outside again at dusk.
The next call came at dusk, they had gone downstairs (the living area of the home is elevated above a poured concrete “basement”) to find the second baby sitting on top of the carrier. They were proud to report a successful “round-up”. Both babies were now on the deck near the birdfeeder from which they had in the past observed Mommy Coon foraging.
The next call came an hour or so later, Mommy Coon showed up and talked to her babies. They were very concerned that Mommy Coon had not returned after they went outside to open the kennel. I told them “not to worry”, I could guarantee that Mommy could see them, even if they could not see her.
The final call came the next day. The reunion was a “Hallmark moment” The cautious Mommy took an agonizingly long time talking to her babies and slowly creeping up on the carrier. Then the babies took their own sweet time exiting the carrier. However, once out, they tumbled with each other and Mommy. Mommy “hugged” each baby before turning her intellect towards how to get both babies off of the second floor deck, preferably in one trip. A comedy of errors ensued before she successfully carried the smaller of the two down the nearby tree while the larger followed close behind.
Lessons learned:Make sure your local animal control knows about WR&E. Inform them about the ten-percent survival rate of relocated adult raccoons. WR&E is eager to talk to homeowners BEFORE they live-trap.
It may take some patience, but Mommy Coons can be encouraged to relocate themselves AND their babies.
It is best to speak to someone with Wildlife Rehab and Education before intervention since they often can provide solutions that don’t require separating babies and their mother or trapping. Once it is determined that the wildlife requires assistance, the animal can be brought to the Wildlife Center at 7007 Katy Road, Houston, TX 77024.
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To Contact Us:
713-861-WILD
The Wildlife Center is
open 7 days a week from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Our trained staff is available
to answer all of your questions or a refer you to an individual wildlife
rehabilitator if necessary.
713-643-WILD
In the evenings,
713-643-WILD and our website, www.WRandE.org
(under Wildlife FAQs)
provide valuable
information on handling and care until the animal can be transported to
the Wildlife Center.
WR&E Wildlife Center 7007 Katy Road, Houston, TX, 77024 |
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