# Baby Racoon :(



## PirateHedgie (Oct 28, 2012)

So a baby raccoon wandered into my mechanic shop today and we followed it outside and didn't see the mom anywhere. The street he was walking towards was pretty busy during the day so i put on some gloved and picked him up by the scruff and put him in a box in my shop for a bit till work ended. I tried to look for the mom to no avail and tried to call local vets and fish and game to see if they could rehab him to no avail. He looked anywhere from 10-15 weeks old and was still small and fluffy but about the size of a juvenile cat. Not knowing what to do with him i put a box by the wooded area behind our shop in hope that after we closed and it got dark the mom would come back to find her baby. 
I feel so horrible because i was so torn on what to do. I know while they can bond with people they are still very much wild and will easily destroy a lot of things in a house lol plus i didn't want to keep him even for a night in fear that if the mom did come back he would be with me. It was really a crap shoot and i didn't want a "pet" raccoon so here i am sitting here worried that he is cold and lonely in the woods now without his mom. 
One of those moments where talking animals would be so helpful! "Oh no friendly human dont worry mom went to get food and will return shortly - just leave me here i'll be fine!"


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Can you check online for any rehabbers in the state? I'm surprised no one referred you to any, unless it's illegal to rehab raccoons in WA. Hopefully mom will come back...but I'd check in the morning in case. Be prepared for a not-pretty sight in case something else found him instead... :? If he's still there, keep him warm & someplace quiet if you plan on keeping him until you can check around for rehabbers. Definitely don't keep him - as you said, raccoons don't make the best pets, and it's illegal to be in possession of wildlife unless you have a rehab license (as far as I know anyway - it's that way in MI). Definitely make sure you always handle him with gloves...and if you do re-collect him in the morning, keep him in something you can throw away afterwards, as well as away from any pets or children. Raccoons can carry raccoon roundworm, which is very harmful and potentially deadly to other mammals. It's a larger danger than the rabies everyone is always worried about.

If you do collect him again, don't feed him anything unless given instructions by a licensed wildlife rehabber. The most I would do is syringe him some water. You can also make up a homemade lactated ringer's solution (hydrating solution that we use at the rehab I volunteer at) by putting a few pinches of salt and a few pinches of sugar into some warm water and syringing him that.


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## PirateHedgie (Oct 28, 2012)

[attachment=0:26rnbqch]1002935_10151539431300896_1677212404_n (1)_448x600.jpg[/attachment:26rnbqch]

Yeah i called a bunch of places and they were all closed and vets wouldn't hold him over night... i didnt have anywhere to keep him


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## PirateHedgie (Oct 28, 2012)

Isnt he heart melting cute though! such a sucker for his little face and ears - hope he is snuggled up with his family!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

If you still find him there in the morning, give the places another call. I would guess bigger, more commercial centers have business hours, but will be open soon enough. Others may be running their rehab out of their home, and still have jobs, etc. I know a pet peeve of some of the rehabbers I know is when people call, leave messages, then call around to 10 more people instead of waiting to see if they get responses. If you leave a message, many of them will call you back (at least they will if they're any good). Hopefully mama came and got him, or he'll be waiting for you in the morning. Good luck!


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## PirateHedgie (Oct 28, 2012)

I never updated, i never saw any sign of him again but some one at work said they saw a mom raccoon with two babies roaming around so i'm hoping he was found


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

Aww, praying Mom found him! 

Thanks for caring enough to try and help him


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## Hedgehogluvr386 (Jun 16, 2012)

Aweeee! so adorable!

Hopefully he found momma!


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## Saca523 (Jul 21, 2013)

Oh my gosh, that picture, I just wanted to take him home and name his Bandit! He is so cute. I'm glad his mom found him though.


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