by Dr. Howard A. Mintzer

In last week's column I discussed some of the factors involved when you find orphaned wildlife. This week I'll continue by discussing emergency treatment- what you can do until you are able to speak with a wildlife rehabilitator, precautions you must take to make sure you and your family aren't exposed to diseases and other factors involved in helping orphaned and injured wildlife.

In review, when you find a baby wild animal you need to: 1) Determine if the baby is truly an orphan (are you sure the mother has been killed). 2) If not an orphan return the baby back where you found it-put it back in a nest, make a new nest in the same location, put the bunnies back in their burrow, return the fawn to its grassy hideout, etc. 3) If the baby is injured contact a veterinarian who deals with injured wildlife. 4) If the orphan baby is not injured speak with a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for further help in raising and rehabilitating the baby for future return to the wild. Orphaned wild animals should never be made into pets!

What can you do until you are able to reach a professional for help? The baby you have found is probably in shock, or at least is a very frightened little creature. Whether it is a newborn fawn, squirrel or feather less bird that has fallen out of its nest its body temperature has probably already begun to drop without the mother around to keep it warm. It may also be weak from lack of food and dehydrated from lack of fluids, depending upon how long it has been on its own. Occasionally there are obvious wounds, bites from your cat or broken bones from a fall out of a tree.

The first thing you need to do is to calm down the frightened animal. This can be accomplished by making some kind of nesting box and putting the orphan in a dark, quiet room. Underneath the nesting box should be a heating pad set on low covered by a towel. Never put the heating pad directly under the animal's box or directly under the animal as you run the risk of overheating it, burning it or possibly killing the baby from heat stroke. This is not the time to show all your friends the cute little animal you have found! Also keep your pets away from the animal. The smell of a predator (your dog or cat) will not help this young animal relax and feel safe.

If the baby has been away from its mother for any significant length of time it is probably quite hungry. Once it has calmed down you can attempt to feed it. Frequent small meals are better than fewer large ones. Baby birds do well on dry dog food which has been soaked in water until it is soft. Turn on the light and bring your hand near the bird's head. Most baby birds will instinctively turn their head up and open their mouths. Sometimes a gentle tap on the beak will elicit this behavior. Once the mouth is open you can drop in a little piece of the softened dog food. You can feed piece after piece until the bird no longer opens its mouth when you offer food. Most mammals (except for deer) do well in the short term with kitten milk replacer given with an eye dropper. Feed it slowly and stop if any milk comes out the nose. Babies will often suck right from the eye dropper. Never feed baby animals on their backs as you would a human baby. Doing so can cause pneumonia because the milk goes into the lungs instead of the stomach. Baby fawns can be fed lamb replacement formula out of a small baby bottle while they are standing or lying on their belly. Diluted cow's milk will due for any mammal for a few feedings until you can get the proper food.

There are risks involved in handling wildlife. Raccoons, skunks and foxes are considered rabies vector species. They should never be handled without heavy gloves. Remember if you get bit the animal must be sacrificed to test for rabies. Many small animals such as squirrels and woodchucks have fleas. Fleas are like the proverbial rats-they will desert a sinking ship. As soon as the orphan's body temperature drops (which starts when mom disappears) they will jump off to a warmer host. Guess who that is? You! We've seen hundreds of fleas jump off a baby squirrel. Although a quick bath is stressful for the baby, so are fleas. Often a soap and warm water bath will drown many of the fleas bringing relief to the baby and some protection to you.

Don't use your dog's flea spray. Not only will it kill the fleas but it will probably kill your orphan. Also be on the alert for ticks. Finally be careful with the baby's feces. Raccoon roundworms can be fatal to people. There are also other worms carried by wildlife that can make you sick. To be safe always wear gloves when attending to wildlife.

I'd like to end this column by talking about wildlife rehabilitators. These are caring people who work to save orphaned or injured wildlife because of their love of nature and all things living. They have to study hard and take a test given by the Department of Environmental Conservation to become licensed. They are not paid for their work, yet they buy food, construct pens, and wake up in the middle of the night to care for their babies. Many people don't appreciate this. They think somehow that it is the duty of a rehabber to come to their house and pick up the little bird. Or worse yet to crawl under their house to retrieve the raccoon with the broken leg. One rehabber I know was berated by a woman because she wouldn't chase an injured swan around a lake in a little rowboat with her two toddlers in tow! This same person tells me that it's not unusual for someone who's turned over an orphan to call her home over and over again at all hours of the day and night to find out how their "baby" is doing.

If you do find a helpless creature that needs a rehabilitator please respect and appreciate the effort that these people make. It is your responsibility to take the critter to the rehabber. Ask when and if you can call to find our how your orphan is doing. While you're there think about making a small donation to cover the cost of the food and supplies that will be consumed over the weeks to months that it will take before your "baby" is ready to be released. Finally, don't forget to thank yourself for doing a good deed.