RESCUING HELPLESS CREATURES: TRUE STORIES

Wildlife rescue opportunities abound, and members of the general public are often the unsung heroes that can take the opportunity in stride.

My opportunity this year came as I was walking by a downtown office building. An obviously emaciated young squirrel was running down the sidewalk, weaving among pedestrians and heading toward the busy street. Although she was not inclined to be rescued, she did allow me to negotiate her back to the safety of the grass, dodging bicycle messengers and cars crossing the pavement from the underground lot, where she started munching on a mushroom. Relieved that she was eating, I returned to my office.

But I couldn't stop worrying about her. The next day, carrying a bag of nuts, I headed back to the place where I had seen her. Certainly she would be gone. But there she was, only a few feet away from where I had left her, and almost passed out with weakness. I tried to feed her, but she wouldn't eat. I hadn't expected to rescue her, only feed her, so I wasn't really prepared. I emptied the contents of my handbag and put her inside, where she fell asleep. Once I got her home, refreshed and strengthened by her nap, she ate almost nonstop for 3 hours, taking only short catnaps on top of the food as if to protect it. Shortly afterwards she joined the rowdy group of juveniles at Kim Gilbert's, where she became healthy and feisty enough to be released in the fall.

The Smallest Rescue

Tracy Wooldridge had some experience rescuing birds that had been attacked like this, but this situation was a new one for her.

As she and her father approached the restaurant in Tysons Corner where they planned to eat lunch, Tracy had the feeling she was going to step on something and looked down. There on the sidewalk, surrounded by broken glass, was a hummingbird. It was alert and watchful, but unable to fly. After checking it for obvious injury, Tracy moved it to safety in the grassy area and went on to lunch.

After lunch, the hummingbird had moved about 4 feet but was still only able to flutter its wings. When she put her hand down beside it, the hummer jumped in her palm and was reluctant to leave it. Tracy obtained a carry out food carton from the restaurant, punched air holes in it, and nestled the tiny thing in its carrier, carrying it back to her office. There she placed it gently in a large potted plant, where it seemed quite content. Every time Tracy held her hand out, the hummer jumped in and settled there. After several telephone calls, Tracy reached Nora Missell, who advised her to mix a sugar water solution. When the bird wouldn't drink, she dipped her finger in the solution and held the finger over its beak. It gratefully took 5 or 6 drops.

The story has a happy ending. Dorothy Tella picked up the hummer and drove it to Nora. After a day of care, it was back to its zippy self and was released. Tracy is planning to join the Wildlife Rescue League and come to the December meeting. And not surprisingly after that experience, hummingbirds are now her favorite bird.

A Challenging Rescue

Not all rescuees are sitting there at your feet waiting to be picked up. A woman out jogging heard a scream overhead and saw a baby squirrel with eyes still closed, literally hanging from a tree limb, holding on for dear life. A sibling was higher up, beyond reach. She rescued the one in immediate distress, putting the cold baby inside her bra to keep it warm. After taking her to a rehabber (where she left a sizable donation also) she got neighbors together to go back for the male. They circled the tree with outstretched blankets in case the baby fell, while she climbed the tree through poison ivy to bring the little guy down.

Rescuers Are Bound by a Common Love

Although the above stories are about white collar office workers, they don't have a monopoly on the compassion and caring it takes to rescue animals.

The internet group I frequent is full of great stories about people who rescue and support, even when it is inconvenient. Geography, socioeconomic status, and career choices may vary, but a love for animals exists in all groups.

Nancy Eilertson, a rehabber in Phoenix says: "The Hell's Angels types are the ones talking baby talk to the little baby dove they have cradled in their hand."

She goes on to tell this story:

"Our hummingbird rehabber had a big, burly construction worker bring her a little Rufous hummingbird last Spring. The guy had been doing cement work in someone's back yard and when he was backing the cement truck out, he brushed against some citrus trees. He then drove (going about 45 MPH) down a bumpy, dirt road and began to hose off the cement truck with a high powered hose.

"After the first hosing, he noticed something move on the grill of the truck. It was a young hummer that had withstood the ride and the hose down. First he held the bird in his hands to warm it up. Then he took his hard hat and lined it with toilet paper from a roll he keeps in the truck and put the bird in that. Then he began the calling process and kept going until he got Darlene's phone number. He walked into her house carrying the hard hat as if it were a delicate piece of crystal and inside was the little hummer safe and sound. He even called her for a few weeks until the bird was released."

The rehabbers nicknamed the bird the "Hard Hat Hummer".

Debbie Tennyson of Lubbock, Texas recalls:

"When I started rehabbing years ago, I was home alone, no one else around or expected for hours. The doorbell rang and as I started for the door, I peered out the window to see the scariest looking character I'd ever seen. I couldn't make out that the person even had a box/animal in his hands. I waited, hoping he realized he had the wrong address or something. He kept ringing the bell, staring in the windows and I was downright scared. I wouldn't go to the door. Finally the man left. The car he got into was a hunk of junk. I worked up the nerve to walk out on the porch to see if he'd brought anything. I found a little shoe box, took it inside and found an injured sparrow inside and a $100 dollar bill!!!"

And finally -- a rehabber in South Carolina reports that a man named Bubba brought her a juvenile squirrel and asked her to name it "Little Bubba". He was adamant that he would be checking back to find out how Little Bubba was doing.