Home / News / Critter Chatter Archive / April 2009 - Orphaned Animals

You Think You've Found an Orphaned Infant Animal?

You found an infant animal and it seemingly is all alone. It's that time of year again, when animals and their young seem to 'spring' up everywhere! The problem is that many times mother and baby can be temporarily separated. When you see a baby animal, be certain that it is truly an orphan before taking it out of the wild.

Mistakenly, many people will pick up baby animals, usually thinking their mothers have abandoned them, or are dead, but you can bet she is around somewhere. Unless you know for certain that the mother is deceased (i.e. found dead nearby) it is often best to leave young animals alone. The animal will have its best chance for survival if it's left right where it's found.

If you find a truly orphaned animal, call your state wildlife agency. They have a list of qualified people who are licensed to care for wild baby animals. Wildlife agencies closely monitor these cases and require that the animals be released at a suitable location as soon as possible. This is done so the animals are not 'imprinted' or dependent upon humans for food and survival.

Most babies are still under the watchful eye of their parents and are mistakenly taken from them by people thinking they are going to help. Unlike human babies, wild animal babies are not constantly watched by their parents and spend large amounts of time alone. (This is especially true of mammals.) In most cases, wild animal babies should be left alone.

Here are some simple rules for dealing with the baby mammals and birds that you may encounter this spring.

• If it has four legs and runs from you, or two wings and flies from you, leave it alone.
• Wild animals do not abandon their babies. If you think you've found an orphaned animal, check later to see if the parents have come back, or have retrieved the animal.
• If you're going to handle a baby animal, know that there is the potential risk for painful bites and scratches, so do not handle wild animals without heavy gloves.

Wild animals and birds are almost always protected by both state and federal laws and the fines for possessing them without proper permits can be very stiff. If you find a truly orphaned animal, call your state wildlife agency.

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