OkcPets Magazine May 2023

24 OKC Pets • May / June 2023 In some cases, people bring baby cotton- tails to WildCare believing they have been orphaned. Staff members can tell if they have been fed. If they have, we ask people to REUNITE the babies with their mothers by putting them back in the nest, monitor- ing it, and keeping pets and kids away from the nest. Virginia opossums. The Virginia opossum is North America’s only marsu- pial. When the babies are born, they live and nurse in their mother’s pouch. As they develop, they crawl out of the pouch and ride on their mother’s back. Because Mom’s back gets crowded, they can fall off. When this happens, Mom does not stop — she might not even know a baby has fallen. If you ever find a singleton baby opossum, it must be RESCUED. There is no chance for reunification, unfortunately. Because they are carrying so many children (as many as 13), mother opossums cannot quickly scurry away from oncoming traffic. Sadly, thousands of baby opossums are orphaned because their moms have been hit by cars. If you find an injured or even dead mother opossum, you can check the pouch. Bring the entire mother opossum with her babies to a wildlife rehabilitator. If you notice larger, out-of-the-pouch babies crawling near the accident scene, be sure to check the entire area for babies that might have been scattered by the impact of the accident, and get them to WildCare or another wildlife rehabilitator. If you see an opossum crossing your yard any time of the day, LEAVE IT ALONE, even if it has babies. This is normal behav- ior. The mother is just looking for nourish- ment so she can continue to produce milk to support the development of her babies. White-tailed deer. WildCare receives scores of calls from people who find a lone fawn sitting in the underbrush or in the tall grass in a field. In many cases, they assume the baby has been orphaned or abandoned. Does leave their babies in well-camouflaged locations while they browse what they need to produce milk. In addition to ensuring that they are getting adequate caloric in- take, eating away from their fawns helps to draw predators away from the babies. If you find a fawn, LEAVE IT ALONE, monitor the situation — keep pets and peo- ple away from the area — and go back in a few hours. Mother deer move their fawns throughout the day, so do not be surprised if the fawn is gone. If, however, the fawn is dirty, has untended scratches, or has ticks, particularly around its eyes and ears, the fawn needs to be RESCUED. Those are indicators that Mom is no longer around to care for her fawn because she has been killed. Reptiles Every year, caring individuals bring baby snakes or turtles to WildCare believing they are orphaned. Reptiles are independent People often bring small turtles toWildCare thinking they are orphaned babies. Reptiles are independent from shortly after birth. Photo courtesy of WildCare Oklahoma.