No sign of momma

Well, it's been 48 hours and we removed the Hav-a-Hart trap from the marina where the baby raccoons were found mid-day Sunday. After we put the babies in a small carrier we tossed in an old towel. We used the towel as "bait" in the trap hoping to lure the momma raccoon in so we could reunite her with her kids. Unfortunately, though there was no sign of the momma coon noising around and the trap remained empty. Once the trap was set up late Sunday, with the tainted towel as bait, it was checked the following morning by a volunteer, the following evening by a marina resident and then finally removed this morning by a volunteer.

Returning to check a trap regularly is a tad inconvenient, but essential. If the animal does go in the trap then it is just that, trapped. If the sun shifts the animal may overheat or it may attract ants, the worst being fire ants! If the trap isn't checked regularly the animal may also go way too long without food and water. Usually a trapped animal, after their initial panic, will calm down, and if their surroundings are quiet, eat the bait. For coons we usually use dry dogfood as bait, but in this case we were trying to entice momma coon with the scent of her adorable little kids.

Regardless, this weekend's orphaned baby raccoons will remain in the care of Nancy Chatelaine until they are old enough to be released on their own. This could be anywhere between the ages of six months to one year. The babies will first learn that Nancy is NOT the enemy, but rather their new momma. She will, afterall, be the one providing them with the yummy formula to fill their empty bellies. As youngsters they will also quickly learn to play with other coons their age and eventually to eat solid foods and to forage for these tasty treats on their own.

Before long these two coon babies will be released into a large hardwood hammock of suitable habitat with a number of their newfound friends. As sub-permittee working under my wildlife rehabilitation permits Nancy, along with her husband Ritchie, are permitted to capture, transport, rehabilitate and eventually release small mammals. Before releasing the animals, however, they must have the landowners permission. Animals cannot be released on state owned property, such as in state parks. Once released, Nancy and Ritchie will return for several days in a row, probably at dusk when the coons are most active, and deposit some piles of food around the release site. This will provide the youngsters with a meal to snack on while they continue to fine-tune their hunting and foraging skills. This is called a soft-release.

Many thanks to the kind folks at the marina for calling us for help when they found the two baby coons quivering in the corner of their tiki pavilion, to the volunteer who drove the babies to Nancy, to the volunteers that checked on the trap and mostly to Nancy (and Ritchie!) who will add these two orphans to their ever growing family of baby coons this summer!