The Wave

I'm not sure if I should say that I just went through four days of heaven or four days of hell? My body is so tired it feels limp, but I love every second I spend syringe feeding baby squirrels! They are so cute! Probobly the cutest things I have ever had the pleasure of working with here.

Since I've been here I've learned that squirrels come in waves. One big wave in the spring and then a another one in the summer. It's no joke either when its referred to as a "wave"! This past week I was put on squirrels four days in a row, which I was actually pretty happy about. (I was getting a little sick of raccoons!) Anyhow, day one there was maybe two totes with one or two eyes closed squirrels in them....

 But by day four I had about six totes with eyes closed! That didn't even include the adult squirrels that came in too, or the squirrels that have their eyes open, but still need to be fed. The little eyes closed need to be fed every three hours, so I would go through my six totes, then do the every four hours, feed the adults, maybe have a little bit of time to clean the syringes, and then the cycle would begin all over again! It was a little tiring, but I also found it really enjoyable! I feel like a mother, and the little squirrels are now like my babies! They reccomemd here not to get attached to anything, but to be honest I believe everyone here gets attached to at least one of the animals! I won't lie, I feel slightly attached to the baby squirrels. But just like a mother I realize that I have to be prepared to let them go. 

Baby flying squirrel

Chippies!

All our evening feed totes! The babies get fed every three hours throughout the night as well!

This is why I am so tired! lol

The Stable

Days off.....days off are a dream! It's all that twirls around in my mind as I tiredly tidy up the clinic in the evening. Luckily they are a dream that comes true......eventually! Don't get me wrong I love the work here......

But I don't think my physical or mental self would last if days off weren't a thing!

So what can I possible do here on my days off ?!!

 Plenty!!!

My number one go to are the horses. I have always been a big equestrian lover, and one of my worries when I applied here was that I would have to leave that passion behind during my stay. Thankfully I have more then enough equestrian activities to occupy myself with! Sue has two horses, one pony, and two donkeys that I can work with.

 Here is a brief summary for each of them.

Saffy!

Saffy is a quarter horse draft mix. She is the three B's to me. Big, beautiful, and a bitch! She loves attention, and she loves the treats! But get on her back and you're off for a wild ride! Luckily, Sue and I were able to solve some tack issues, and I can finally ride her!  She is tough, but she still has potential I'm sure!

Phelix

The second I looked into Phelix's eyes, I knew we would get on just fine. Sue told me, he might try to buck me off, but so far it has been all good! I can't do anything crazy on him, because he has weak front knees. Still, it is quite enjoyable sitting on his back and watching the sun set. He is so sound with me. I can stand on him, kneel, lay down and he doesn't even care! I have even been teaching him tricks and he seems to be enjoying it! Or maybe he's just enjoying the treats?!

 

 

Jossey

Jossey is one of Sue's donkeys, but I'm inclined to say she's a mule. She had very little training when I got here, which makes her a bit difficult. But also a good challenge! I have never worked a donkey from scratch before, so she has been a good learning experience for me! So far I can make her move, which is a start, because the only way she would move before was backwards!

Jenny + Cookie

Jenny is Sue's other donkey, and she is Jossy's mother. Unfortunatly I can't ride her because she is too old, too small, and very nervous! She is warming up to me though. Cookie is Sue's pony. I also can't ride her because of size and she is also blind! However, she has amazing hair and I love braiding it!

To be honest, the horses are probably my favorite part of being here. I'm not sure why.....horses just make me excited to get up early, and working with them doesn't even feel like work at all! It's been really exciting lately, because the other interns have been getting up early on their days off, so they can work with the horses too! Its been really fun giving them mini lessons. It's made me realize that I know more about equine stuff then I had even realized.

Lucinda and I riding together

Getting Saffy used to other riders.

Hatchlings!!!!

You know, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would get excited over turtles! Now, I can't stop smiling out of joy and amazement when I look down at our tiny hatchlings trying to escape their eggs! It's magical really! Yesterday I was on turtles and I was having a really hard getting back to work, because all I wanted to do was sit there and watch the little hatchlings emerge!

A little blandings turtle beside its sibling that is emerging!

Painted turtle hatchling!

Snapping turtle hatchling!

We also released some of the hatchlings yesterday! Sue gave us part of our break during supper, so all us interns could go release them together! It was a magical moment, and lots of fun! 

 

 

Can you spot the babies?!! They blend in well!!

 

 

The turtle crew! 

Sleep vs Suprises

What is sleep? Does it even exist?!  Every work day I get about five hours of sleep..... but it feels more like two. At the moment all I want for Christmas is sleep wrapped up anyway you want! As long as I get it! 

Despite this though, I am super excited to get up each morning! Day on, or day off. Around here no day is the same.

It's like each day is a kinder surprise!

For example, one day while we were cleaning up the clinic, we were surprised to discover that some of our turtle eggs had hatched early!!!!

Another surprise was a litter of kitten someone brought us. Apparently their mother had been killed by a coyote. We don't normally take domestics here, but the lady didn't know where to go! So (long story short) we had the kittens for two days, and they were so adorable!  I got to syringe feed them every three hours, which was tiring, but totally worth it!

I can't believe it, but I've already been here a month! Time really flies when you are working hard! Anyhow, since I started this blog late, here is a sum up of the coolest admissions this month!

My favorite being the coyote pup! He is so cute! I didn't think we would ever end up with one. I am so happy I got to work with him!

We also got two loons, although one died. We still have the other one though, and she isn't looking too bad. It's the coolest thing ever to hear loon sounds while you are working!

Someone also brought in the most adorable baby skunks ever! I had never seen skunks that small before! They are so small we have to syringe feed them, which they don't like too much, but at least it's helping them gain weight.

We also got several ground hogs in the last two weeks. I wouldn't say they are super exciting, but they are really cute!

 
And lastly we got a baby raccoon! I was so disappointed at first, because although I was on raccoons, I couldn't handle it! It was too risky, since I could of past on something from the other raccoons... like the raccoon round worm. Thankfully, not long after, I was put on birds, and was able to bottle feed the sweet little thing before it left for a foster home.

Anyhow, I'm pretty excited heading into my second month here!The first one flew by, so we shall see how fast this one goes. Sadly we are going to be losing some interns this month, but at least a few of us will still be chilling together for awhile!

 

We are still pushing through, even though it sometimes feels impossible! Four more months to go!! Yah!!

 

Photo creds

Lucinda Plowmen (meg and I, kitten, skunk, baby raccoon)

Ginger Elliot (ground hog)

Morgan Lemieux(coyote pup)