POTENTIALLY ORPHANED MAMMALS
I found a baby rabbit
- Rabbits make their nests in burrows, a depression in a garden and even in the middle of a lawn. The nest is usually covered with dried grass and bits of the mother’s fur. Mothers leave the nest during the day to draw attention away from the young. The mother usually only returns when dark, at dusk and dawn, to nurse the bunnies so it is not unusual to never see the mother.
- Rabbits are extremely difficult to rehabilitate. The stress of human handling can cause shock and even death. If the animal shows no signs or illness or injury, it is always best to leave a nest where you find it.
- Cottontail bunnies are on their own at about three to four weeks of age and when they are about 4 inches long. Their best chance for survival is to let the mother raise them, so keep children and pets away from them for this short time. If you need to let a pet out during the day, you can protect the nest by covering it temporarily with a recycle bin or laundry basket with a rock on top.
- If you find or uncover a nest of cottontails and they show no signs of illness or injury, put the babies back where you found them and cover them up with the nesting material. Moving a rabbit's nest is not recommended. To be sure the mother is coming back to feed them, place several twigs on top of the whole nest in a checkerboard fashion. If the twigs have been moved after the next feeding time (dawn or dusk), the mother returned to feed them.
I found a baby squirrel
- If a baby squirrel is following people or pets, or even crawls up your leg, it is looking for food and needs rescuing.
- If you find more than one baby squirrel at the base of a tree and the nest was not destroyed, this may be a sign that the babies are orphaned and started to leave the nest. Check for signs of illness or injury.
- Sometimes a baby squirrel will fall out of its nest. Usually, the mother will retrieve it as long as the baby is warm and healthy.
- To try to reunite a squirrel baby with its mother, put it in a small box it cannot climb out of, and attach it to the trunk of the tree a few feet off the ground. Do not cover the baby with any bedding. It is very important to keep the baby warm—the mother will not retrieve a cold baby. You can fill a small soda pop bottle with hot water, wrap it in a towel, and brace it inside the box. Replace the hot water frequently as it cools down. Leave the area and monitor from a distance—the mother will not return if there are people or pets around. If the mother has not retrieved the baby within a couple of hours, it might need rescuing. Never leave a baby squirrel out overnight since the mother will not retrieve it after dark. Bring the squirrel inside for the night to keep warm and put the box back outside first thing in the morning.
- If you recently excluded a squirrel from your attic or other area and found babies left behind, immediately put the babies in a small box as close as possible to where you found them. Follow the above instructions.
I found a baby raccoon
- Raccoons that are eight weeks old often play together under their mother’s supervision. Before disturbing them, observe from a distance to see if the mother is indeed watching over them.
- Raccoon babies that are smaller than the length of your hand and have closed eyes are usually orphaned and need rescuing.
- If you found a single baby raccoon that shows no signs of illness or injury, try to reunite the baby with its mother for at least one night. Put the baby in a box it cannot climb out of (e.g. a recycle bin), and place the box as close as possible to where you found it. It is very important to keep the baby warm—the mother will not retrieve a cold baby. Put the box half-on and half-off a heating pad set to low, so that the animal can move to the non-heated side if it is too warm. Never place an animal directly on a heating pad. You can also fill a soda bottle with hot water, wrap it in a towel and brace it inside the box so that it does not roll on the animals. Replace the hot water frequently as it cools down. Leave the area and monitor every few hours. As long as the baby is warm and not in imminent danger, leave it out during the first night since the mother will usually retrieve it after nightfall.
- If you recently excluded a raccoon from your attic or other area and found babies left behind, immediately put the babies in a small box as close as possible to where you found them. Follow the above instructions.
I found a baby skunk
- Skunks often take older babies out for walks at night. If you see baby skunks at night, observe them from a distance to see if the mother is with them.
- If you find a single baby skunk out during the day, it is usually orphaned and needs rescuing.
I found a baby chipmunk or groundhog
- It is very unusual to find a baby chipmunk or groundhog. If you find one, it is probably orphaned and needs rescuing.
I found a fawn
- Fawns are often found lying quietly in a field or by the side of a road. Mothers leave the young during the day and come back several times a day to feed them. If you find a fawn and it is not crying, leave it there (leave quickly so it does not follow) and check back in four to eight hours. If it is injured or crying, then it needs help. Note that the Rideau Valley Wildlife Sanctuary does not have the facilities to rehabilitate deer, but if you find an orphaned fawn, call RVWS to find the nearest rehabilitator.
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