Mammal FAQ

• Wearing a light-weight cloth glove, gently pick up the pup and take it inside the house to the highest possible window on the same wall as the pup was found. 
• Open the window and put the pup outside, with its head facing up.  
• The pup will scramble upward to the roost.
• Even if the pup does not have its eyes open, it will find the roost hole by smell. 
• If the wall is in the hot sun, wait until evening and keep the bat at room temperature in a box furnished with a towel for the pup to hang on.
• Pups may be offered a drink of Pedialyte from Q-tip dipped in the rehydration solution.
• If the pup grabs the Q-tip and starts sucking, re-saturate the Q-tip by placing drops of Pedialyte on the tip with an eyedropper.

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• Wearing a light-weight cloth glove, gently pick up the pup.
• Place the pup with its head facing upward towards the location of a known colony.
• If the location of the colony is not known, then the pup needs to be taken to a wildlife rehabilitator.

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• The pup is probably a Red Bat or a Hoary Bat, but it is important to try to identify and make-sure the pup is one of these two species.
• Wear a light-weight cloth glove, and gently pick up the pup.
• Place the pup head-down as high in the tree as can be reached.

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• Never pick up a bat that is lying on the ground with your bare hands. Although rare, a bat found on the ground has a 4 to 5% chance of being rabid.
• Other reasons a bat may become grounded include raptor attacks, migration exhaustion, building strikes, general physical debilitation, unsuccessful fledge.

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Tolerance:  

Leave the bats alone and enjoy their environmental importance as a means of insect control.

Exclusion:

• Should not be done until mid-August or later to make sure all the young in a roost are flying independently.
• Locate all outside entrances to the structure. 
• Seal all but the primary or largest entrance hole.  
• Place netting, attached at the top corners only, over this hole.
  • This method allows the bats to safely leave but not re-enter the structure.
  • They will relocate. 
  • Leave the netting in place for at least 3 days.
• In buildings that are non-sealable, bats can be encouraged to leave by the use of fiberglass insulation in roofing and attic areas where bats would tend to congregate.

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Bat Removal Method 1:

• Wait until dark and then open a window or door.  
• Turn off all interior light sources including TV’s, digital light displays, and night lights in the area where the bat is located. 
• Do not chase the bat.  
• It will find its way out all by itself.

Bat Removal Method 2:

• A resting bat can be captured and released outside using a coffee can and a piece of heavy cardboard.  
• Wearing gloves, place the coffee can over the bat.  
• Gently slide the piece of cardboard between the container and the surface on which the bat is resting, trapping it inside.

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• Sometimes outdoor cats and dogs can be seen as prey.  
• Cats should be kept indoors.
• Dogs should be walked with a short leash during nighttime walks. 

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• Coyotes very rarely ever attack a human.  
• If you encounter a coyote, wave your hands, look as big as possible, and yell at it to “SCRAM!”  
• You should never run from a coyote.

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• Place the youngster(s) in a small box (shoe box size)
• Place a hot water bottle or a microwaved potato in the box with the youngsters for supplemental warmth.
• Place the box at the base of or nearby the nest tree.
  • If the weather is rainy, wait until the weather clears.
  • If the weather is going to be cold or rainy for an extended period of time, 12 to 24 hours, rehabilitation will probably be needed.

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• Wait until activity of saws and people has calmed down.
• Place the youngster(s) in a small box (shoe box size) with as much of their original nest as possible.
• Place a hot water bottle or a microwaved potato in the box with the youngsters for supplemental warmth.
• Place the box on the stump of the cutdown tree.
  • If the weather is rainy, wait until the weather clears.
  • If the weather is going to be cold or rainy for an extended period of time, 12 to 24 hours, rehabilitation will probably be needed.

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• Weaned bunnies found in an unsuitable area (parking lot, dog pen, middle of the street, etc.) can be relocated.
• Look for an overgrown area that has tall grass and weeds. 
• It is important that the area selected is rarely or never mowed.

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• If family pets know the location of a rabbit’s nest and won’t leave it alone, then cover the nest with a garbage can lid, plastic milk crate or laundry basket during the day or whenever the pets are outside.
• The nest must remain uncovered from about an hour before dark in the evening and about an hour after daylight in the morning so the doe can return to the nest to feed.

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If a rabbit’s nest is disturbed:

• Collect the youngsters and put them back in the nest.
• Cover the young with as much of the nesting material as can be found.
• A loose layer of dry straw or hay may be substituted if there is insufficient natural nesting material available.
• A piece or two of string may be draped over the nest and re-checked in 24 hours to see if the nest has been disturbed, indicative of mother’s return.

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If a rabbit’s nest is disturbed:

• Collect the youngsters and put them back in the nest.
• Cover the young with as much of the nesting material as can be found.
• A loose layer of dry straw or hay may be substituted if there is insufficient natural nesting material available.
• A piece or two of string may be draped over the nest and re-checked in 24 hours to see if the nest has been disturbed, indicative of mother’s return.

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If a rabbit’s nest is flooded:

• Remove the young and dry them off.
• Allow the nest a few hours to dry.
• After the nest and young are dry, put them back in the nest and cover with nesting material.

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Plant one for the rabbit.
Plant one for the crow.
Plant one for Mother Nature.
Plant one to grow.

• Sow a perimeter of dark greens around your garden for the rabbits to nibble on.
• Put up a short barrier fence around your garden.
• To reduce nesting and foraging options remove:
  • low shrubbery branches.
  • tall, dense vegetation.
  • wood and debris pile.
  • vegetation along fence rows.

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• Since raccoons are nocturnal, the youngster(s) may not be reclaimed until several hours after dark.
• Wearing gloves, place the youngster on a clean towel in a box.
• Set the box at the base of the tree or near where it fell from.
• If the youngster does not have its eyes open, provide supplemental heat with a hot water bottle or microwaved potato during the reclaim.
• It often helps to attract the mother’s attention if a small dish of dog food is set beside the box.  She will stop to eat, calm down and retrieve her errant youngster.

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• If a mother and her young are found in a house or other structure, if possible allow the mother to raise her litter.
• When the young are old enough to accompany their mother on evening walks, exclude them from returning by:
  • Capping chimneys 
  • Repairing loose shingles and siding
• Put a radio tuned to a talk-radio station and bright lights in the nesting area to encourage them to leave.

• Secure your garbage can lids with a bungee cord or a cement block on top.
• Use scented garbage bags.
• Place any food debris in tightly sealed plastic bags or sealable containers before putting in the trash.
• Sprinkle cayenne pepper on the garbage can lid.

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Suspend lots of large flat rocks at various levels so the fish have a hiding spot.

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Cayenne pepper sprinkled on garden plants often acts as a deterrent.

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• Cap chimneys.
• Secure loose siding.
• Repair or replace loose roof shingles.

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There are several commercial products that may be used to neutralize the odor on people and pets.

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• Skunks will dig tunnels in about any soft soil under decks, walks, porches, houses, sheds, garages and buildings.
• Dens may be used for living and birthing.
• To exclude skunks:
  • Make sure all inhabitants have left the den (usually at night).
  • Locate and fill all holes with rocks.
  • Place a piece of hardware cloth on top of the rocks.
  • Hold the hardware cloth in place with more rocks.

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