Where the Wild Thing Aren't

Earlier this month, we arrived at the cottage armed with information about how to feed Sugar and Spike during our stay. For those of you who may not remember these critters by name, they are the orphaned raccoon kits which were found under my deck this past April. They are now living outdoors full time but still rely on the kindness of their human friends to feed them. The trick is to fatten them up sufficiently to make it through the winter. Their evening meal consists of dry cat food and just about any scrap left over from our own day's meals. And fish guts. They really like fish guts - the heads, tail and innards left over from filleting the day's catch.

Early that evening we went to their feeding spot a few yards/meters away from the cottage, but still within its sight. We poured out their food and returned to the cottage. Not more than a half hour passed and one little raccoon ambled over to it and started eating.

I wandered out to him. He kept a wary eye on me but continued shoveling food into his mouth. At one point he came over to me and nudged my hand with his nose. That was it for our interaction for the night.

The following afternoon, Benny alerted Frank to some whining noises coming from the nearby tree. Glancing up, he saw these two adorable faces watching them.

There was a third larger and presumably older raccoon on a higher branch but he or she only presented us with a bushy, striped tail. It was an encouraging sight to see that they had hooked up with a more mature raccoon who might be able to teach them how to fish and hunt for themselves. Later that day, when I brought their food outside, Spike came bounding over to me, put his paws on my leg and looked straight into my eyes. The face that greeted me had porcupine quills on the left side.

We looked him over and he didn't appear to be in pain. His appetite was good but Frank decided to call his sister Theresa - the raccoons' adoptive Mom for advice. Her solution was to drive up to the cottage the next day, figuring that only she would be able to hold him while Frank took the pliers to the quills and pull them out. Spike allowed me to pet him and scratch his head while he ate.

Theresa arrived with her sister, Lisa the following afternoon.

Accompanying them were Luca

and Sambuca

- two adorable 10 week old (approximately) kittens which were found abandoned and brought to Theresa with their umbilical cords still attached. This is what they looked like when I first saw them in the middle of June.

Now they're bright, healthy, well-adjusted kittens which appear normal in every way, despite never having had a feline mother. Benny loved playing with them and they were used to Theresa's dogs, so they let him discover, mother and practically smother them with kisses. Benny was beside himself with excitement. This video, which is less than a minute in length will give you an idea of how they interacted.

Lisa's beautiful dog, Oona was much more placid and nonchalant about the whole thing.

Theresa also brought Hailey, who was the newest member of her adoptive family. Can you figure out what she is? Give it some thought. I'll keep on talking.

Hailey was just a few days old when somebody found her on her driveway. She was brought to Theresa who fed her every 45 minutes during the day and a bit less frequently through the night.

She was pink-bellied, hairless and incredibly cute. (The following three videos are less than 30 seconds each.)

She was fed with a syringe,

stimulated to assist with elimination

and kept very warm, wrapped up next to a heater. By the second or third day, she became more active, began to sprout whisker and started making vocal sounds. The second to last day we were there, she began to bloat a bit. Her energy level diminished some and her vocalization was softer. Her appetite was still good but she just didn't seem right. Sadly, on the last night we were there, she died.

She had a short, little life without great chance of survival, but Hailey the squirrel had most certainly been loved.

Back to Spike. Theresa was able to pull most of the quills out by hand while he was eating.

Only one was painful enough to cause him to nip at her hand but the rest, he hardly noticed. He looked as handsome as ever when she was done. I love how he tends to hold the bowl in place with one of his back feet while shoveling in food with the front.

Spike, despite being the shy kit early on, has become the more adventurous and affectionate one of the pair. He's been known to enter the cottage through an open window and dine on peaches which he robbed from the kitchen counter. Once, Theresa woke up to discover that he'd made his way into the cottage, and climbed into her bed to cuddle with her. He was right beside her, gazing at her and touching her face. He's also becoming destructive, having torn through a screen window or two. I have concerns that the surrounding cottage-dwellers won't have any idea that these two are semi-tame and they might fear their friendliness as a sign of rabies, but Theresa plans to let others know about Sugar and Spike so they can just let them be, and maybe even offer up a meal now and again.

It was a lovely, restful time spent with wonderful people and adorable creatures.

Stay tuned and in a few days I'll post some photos of some of the wilder critters we encountered.