Springtime is a time of renewal as the last remnants of winter are lost and along with the new leaves, the flowers and warm air, the local wildlife is starting life anew. Yes, it is baby season again. However, it is important to remember that wild animals are just that, wild. If you decide to take in a wild animal as a pet, there is little in the way of pet health care that can help you. It is best to leave them alone and wild. Yet, every year, wild animal young are found orphaned and are instantly adopted by the good-hearted animal lover.
If you do find orphaned or injured animals in the wild, it is best to call animal control, as they know what is best for the animal. They are trained in wild animal and stray pet health, so they can better assist the animal. If you are not comfortable calling animal control, in rural areas, there are local veterinarians that have began treating wild animals and then releasing them to wildlife sanctuaries for rehabilitation. Many babies are brought in by citizens of our community who want to help and are concerned about the well being of our wildlife. In rural areas, at least once day orphaned young or injured wildlife is brought to the vet's office. They all have great hearts and should be commended. Unfortunately, about 90 percent of the babies that vets see are orphaned not because mom abandoned them, but because good Samaritans are too quick to lend a helping hand.
Just like human children, wild animals grow up in stages. When they are newborns they cling tightly to their mother's side whether it be in a nest, in a den, or wandering around. As they grow older they seek a little distance from their parents. The freedoms and distances become greater and greater until they are ready to support themselves. It is during this process that we humans can disrupt the natural learning process of wildlife. We see babies alone and think of them as orphans when actually their mom is close by. Baby birds are kicked out of the nest to learn to feed and fly. Mom is always close by to help with the feeding. We walk up to see a baby bird and immediately think it is orphaned. We scoop it up and now we have greatly lowered its chances at a normal life.
Deer along with birds are the most common animals brought into veterinarian clinic, particularly in the United States. Deer are foragers, they move about daily grazing so the babies walk along with their mothers. When deer are frightened, the mother runs away and the baby just sits down trying to blend into the environment. When the danger passes Mom returns and they go about their business. Once again, when we get involved all we see is a baby deer lying helplessly on the ground with no mother in site, so they are brought the local animal hospital for treatment. These babies are now orphaned by our own hands. This spring try to let nature take its course. If you see young wildlife, observe it from a distance over a twenty-four-hour period before making the decision to bring it into the hospital. Unfortunately, humans are poor surrogates to their real mothers. Our pet health care knowledge does not extend to wild animals nor should it. Only trained professionals should be handling wild animals. If you see an orphaned young in the wild, leave it be. Chances are good that mom is around the corner.
Gary Pearson is an accomplished niche website developer and author.
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