Found an orphaned baby raccoon. :( Meet Amika.

CZroe · May 8th, 2012, 03:39 AM

Link to original page on YouTube.

Early yesterday afternoon I found this poor little thing in someone's front yard, a few yards from a deep rotted tree stump/hole where, no doubt, it was nesting before its mother disappeared. This yard is actually around the town square, so traffic is very busy and wildlife like this usually stays far away. The reason there are residential homes in such a busy area is that they are historical, spared during Sherman's March due to this being a hospital city. Anyway, the yard slopes down toward the sidewalk where there is a 1-foot drop, but the baby didn't fall because it got stuck against the wire post from some realtor sign pushed into the lawn. That's where I found a barely-alive but noticeably-breathing ball of fur. Its eyes were opened but it seemed blind at first because it could barely move its head (couldn't follow movement). I used a flashlight and there did not seem to be anything else in the stump. Because raccoons are nocturnal, I could only assume the worst: The weak raccoon left the nest in desperation because the mother had not returned after meeting some grisly end in the busy streets.

I called Animal Control and they told me I had to call a state raccoon-certified handler, which sounded more like a license to manage them for pest control purposes. I wanted to find a wildlife rescue organization instead. I searched online and found Atlanta Wildlife Animal Rescue Effort (AWARE) and went down the contact list, but it appears that rescue orgs need raccoon certs as well and everyone remotely near me either had no raccoon cert or did not answer.

Even though I was filling in for a grave shift and needed to sleep, I could not abandon it, so I took it home and read that I needed to hydrate with electrolytes and feed it Kitten Milk Replacement (KMR). Evening was fast approaching and I still had not slept for my shift nor heard back from any of the rescue orgs, so I began planning to nurse it through the night at work. My mother attempted to hydrate it with electrolytes while I put off my sleep to find KMR and a pet feeding bottle at a pet store. We could not tell if it was getting any down the throat but it did begin chattering, grasping, and crawling, which was a good sign. I still had about two hours to sleep and had taken two OTC sleep aids a couple hours earlier, so I showered and jumped in bed only to find that I missed some wildlife rescue call-backs while in the shower.

I spent those two hours driving through Atlanta with only enough time to go straight to work with no sleep, but extremely relieved for the poor thing.

It's not a pet, but my brother suggested calling it "Nook" (see if you get this reference). I suggested "Tanuki," the "Japanese raccoon dog" that inspired "Tanooki" Mario in Super Mario Bros. 3, but quickly changed it to Amika, which is "Akima" spelled backwards. I'll be calling and checking on Amika's progress.

TnNinjaGirl · May 8th, 2012, 08:31 AM

Good job!Great name!

Jiggles · May 8th, 2012, 01:42 PM

Baby Rabies!!!

better name

Jono · May 8th, 2012, 03:49 PM

What a cutie!!!

Does somebody need a hug?

Link to original page on YouTube.

greg737 · May 8th, 2012, 04:09 PM

DBentley415 · May 8th, 2012, 04:55 PM

How cute!

A year or two ago my boyfriend's dog found a baby rabbit and we took it in to nurse it back to health. We fed it the same thing I think. It was lots of fun to play with and hold, but then one day it turned on us and would no longer let anyone touch it. Apparently it's wild side couldn't be tamed, so we let it go

drac · May 8th, 2012, 07:01 PM

mmmmm.....In a coupla' months that'll be good eatin'

kevheads · May 8th, 2012, 09:09 PM

I had a pet raccoon growing up, bought it from a registered furbearer breeder, had to bottle feed it for a couple of weeks then switched it to puppy chow. They'll take to a kitty litter box the same as a cat does. Mine was pretty mellow but if it got food or something it wanted there was no taking it away from him. He loved PBJ's and marshmellows.I keep mine for 6 months or so then donated it to a local Wildlife Prairie Park. A fun pet but still a wild animal.

kevheads · May 8th, 2012, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by greg737

I remember trying to catch some of those when I was young, the tomato bath after wasn't fun.

csmith12 · May 9th, 2012, 11:53 AM

I tend to stay away from wildlife, best of luck to you.

akima · May 12th, 2012, 07:53 AM

@CZroe: that raccoon is so sweet. I hope it survives. Have you figured out where you will release the lil raccoon? I'm honoured to have it named after me!

May 8th, 2012, 03:39 AM	#1
CZroe CPT Falcon Name: J.Emmett Turner Location: Newnan, GA Join Date: Apr 2009 Motorcycle(s): '08 CP Blue EX250J, '97 unpainted EX250F, 2nd '97 unpainted EX250F (no engine), '07 black EX250F Posts: A lot.	Found an orphaned baby raccoon. :( Meet Amika. Link to original page on YouTube. Early yesterday afternoon I found this poor little thing in someone's front yard, a few yards from a deep rotted tree stump/hole where, no doubt, it was nesting before its mother disappeared. This yard is actually around the town square, so traffic is very busy and wildlife like this usually stays far away. The reason there are residential homes in such a busy area is that they are historical, spared during Sherman's March due to this being a hospital city. Anyway, the yard slopes down toward the sidewalk where there is a 1-foot drop, but the baby didn't fall because it got stuck against the wire post from some realtor sign pushed into the lawn. That's where I found a barely-alive but noticeably-breathing ball of fur. Its eyes were opened but it seemed blind at first because it could barely move its head (couldn't follow movement). I used a flashlight and there did not seem to be anything else in the stump. Because raccoons are nocturnal, I could only assume the worst: The weak raccoon left the nest in desperation because the mother had not returned after meeting some grisly end in the busy streets. I called Animal Control and they told me I had to call a state raccoon-certified handler, which sounded more like a license to manage them for pest control purposes. I wanted to find a wildlife rescue organization instead. I searched online and found Atlanta Wildlife Animal Rescue Effort (AWARE) and went down the contact list, but it appears that rescue orgs need raccoon certs as well and everyone remotely near me either had no raccoon cert or did not answer. Even though I was filling in for a grave shift and needed to sleep, I could not abandon it, so I took it home and read that I needed to hydrate with electrolytes and feed it Kitten Milk Replacement (KMR). Evening was fast approaching and I still had not slept for my shift nor heard back from any of the rescue orgs, so I began planning to nurse it through the night at work. My mother attempted to hydrate it with electrolytes while I put off my sleep to find KMR and a pet feeding bottle at a pet store. We could not tell if it was getting any down the throat but it did begin chattering, grasping, and crawling, which was a good sign. I still had about two hours to sleep and had taken two OTC sleep aids a couple hours earlier, so I showered and jumped in bed only to find that I missed some wildlife rescue call-backs while in the shower. I spent those two hours driving through Atlanta with only enough time to go straight to work with no sleep, but extremely relieved for the poor thing. It's not a pet, but my brother suggested calling it "Nook" (see if you get this reference). I suggested "Tanuki," the "Japanese raccoon dog" that inspired "Tanooki" Mario in Super Mario Bros. 3, but quickly changed it to Amika, which is "Akima" spelled backwards. I'll be calling and checking on Amika's progress. Last futzed with by CZroe; May 8th, 2012 at 03:25 PM.

May 8th, 2012, 01:42 PM	#3
Jiggles Jigglin' your Jiglets Name: Sean Location: San Jose, Ca Join Date: Jun 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2009 K1300S, 2013 Ninja 300, 2011 Ninja 250R, Faster than Unregistered's ninjette Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 1 MOTM - Apr '13	Baby Rabies!!! better name __________________________________________________ If the Ninja 250 doesn't have enough power for you, then you don't know how to ride it. AFM #676 Supersports are for n00bs

May 8th, 2012, 07:01 PM	#7
drac ninjette.org member Name: drac Location: VA Join Date: Mar 2012 Motorcycle(s): '88 Hurricane 600, '09 Ninja 250 Posts: 237	mmmmm.....In a coupla' months that'll be good eatin' __________________________________________________ While no trees were harmed in making this post, a large number of electrons were severely inconvenienced.

May 9th, 2012, 11:53 AM	#10
csmith12 The Corner Whisperer Name: Chris (aka Reactor) Location: Northern KY Join Date: May 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2010 250 (track), 1992 250, 2006 R6 (street/track), 2008 R6 (track) Posts: Too much. MOTY 2015, MOTM - Nov '12, Nov '13	I tend to stay away from wildlife, best of luck to you. __________________________________________________ Goal: Shake A Million Hands \| Look through the corners \| Track Day Prep \| Closest track? \| The Mid-Ohio School

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
hit a raccoon	arneson2790	!%@*#$%!)@#&!%@ I crashed!	14	March 31st, 2013 08:55 AM
My Baby on My Baby	Gfortunes	Pictures	9	October 3rd, 2011 09:39 PM
My baby....	Honko	!%@*#$%!)@#&!%@ I crashed!	37	September 27th, 2011 04:46 PM
My baby is here!	noche_caliente	Off-Topic	42	August 24th, 2010 01:18 PM
[topix.net] - Harley Baby Clothing: Buying Harley Davidson Baby Clothes	Ninjette Newsbot	Motorcycling News	0	August 6th, 2009 10:50 PM

May 8th, 2012, 08:31 AM	#2
TnNinjaGirl Ms. Personality Name: CB Location: Murvill, TN Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): Depends on the week you ask Posts: A lot.	Good job!Great name!

May 8th, 2012, 03:49 PM	#4
Jono ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Jono Location: Memphis, TN Join Date: Sep 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Triumph Street Triple, 2009 KLX250SF, 2003 Suzuki SV650S (Sold), 2006 Ninja 250 (Sold) Posts: A lot.	What a cutie!!! Does somebody need a hug? Link to original page on YouTube.

May 8th, 2012, 04:09 PM	#5
greg737 - Name: - Location: - Join Date: May 2009 Motorcycle(s): - Posts: A lot.

May 8th, 2012, 09:09 PM	#8
kevheads ninjette.org guru Name: Kevin Location: central Illinois Join Date: Apr 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Green 250R Posts: 346	I had a pet raccoon growing up, bought it from a registered furbearer breeder, had to bottle feed it for a couple of weeks then switched it to puppy chow. They'll take to a kitty litter box the same as a cat does. Mine was pretty mellow but if it got food or something it wanted there was no taking it away from him. He loved PBJ's and marshmellows.I keep mine for 6 months or so then donated it to a local Wildlife Prairie Park. A fun pet but still a wild animal.

May 12th, 2012, 07:53 AM	#11
akima Nooblet Name: Akima Location: England Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 5 MOTM - Oct '13	@CZroe: that raccoon is so sweet. I hope it survives. Have you figured out where you will release the lil raccoon? I'm honoured to have it named after me!