New York Wildlife Rescue: Busy,Busy, Busy

Don't call, don't write.... I'm not dead (yet), just really busy. Wildlife Authority at the Power Authority went well. I also took some wildlife to the Schoharie County Youth Conference on Monday. It went really well and the kids were great. Last weekend was the first weekend that I was home in months. I love traveling around and doing our shows but it is always nice to be home and get some work done. Winter is coming and some friends helped me get some projects finished up. I have to get firewood cut before it snows.

Oscar the bobcat went into his new enclosure. We poured concrete, built a building and specially designed a cage for him to be over-wintered in. If he is ever going to go back into the wild he needs lots of exercise but he couldn't have the high trees and dangerous heights that a lot of our other enclosures have because he could break his plate out of his hip if he got having too much fun. The entire enclosure including the concrete and building was around $2500 that I really didn't plan on spending but he is worth it. His cage is neat because it has a squeeze cage built into it for safely catching him. We always do things first class not half-assed around NY Wildlife Rescue Center.

Last weekend was also cool because we got the last of the releasable animals back into the wild before it got too late in the season. Derick and I released 2 skunks, 2 opposums, 2 squirrels and a red fox. These were all critters that needed every advantage of being in captivity but didn't need to be overwintered. We actually flew 2 redtails on a line, using a trick a falconer taught me. We really need to get this flight built so that we can get birds properly conditioned and exercised for release. We have about half of the money that I estimate for materials but I really don't want to start it if I don't think that we can afford to finish it before the snow flies.

This week could be described as "lets ditch our dog week". The week started off with a phone call about a sheep that has been home alone for months. The sheep is happily running around the pasture with my sheep now. I still have 4 kittens that are looking for homes and really wish that someone would adopt them. In the past two days I have adopted out a pitbull, a german wirehair pointer, two labs, a siamese cat, a beagle, and hopefully a little shitzu. I have done my good deed; now stop calling me to find a home for your dog, I am running out of friends to adopt them.

Yesterday, one of the rescued llamas from this spring blessed us with a little female cria. I miss the baby llamas so much, we don't breed any animals anymore so when we get little ones, it is always fun ... even if they are offspring of previously unwanted animals who were destined to a life of misery. They were lucky to be born at NY Wildlife Rescue center, I guess.