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My temporary houseguest

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  • My temporary houseguest

    I though y'all would like this.

    There was a bit of excitement at my house on Friday afternoon. I was at work, and my phone rang. Call display showed it was my husband and I freaked, because he NEVER calls me unless it's an emergency.

    Well, it was, just not the sort of emergency I'd been expecting.

    He'd been out kayaking on the river behind our house because the water is really high and you can get into all sorts of places you can't normally paddle. So he was playing in the turbulence just below the long stretch of rapids that spills into our section, and he heard this loud squeaking noise being repeated over and over. At first he thought it was a bird, there are lots of noisy birds around here. Then he spotted something very small struggling in the middle of the roughest patch of water. He paddled over and it tried to climb onto the kayak in desperation, but it was too little. So he carefully slipped his paddle under it and gently scooped it onto the deck of the kayak, then paddled home with extreme caution.

    He put his tiny passenger in a big plastic tub and then ran inside to call me because I work for an environmental engineering firm and if anyone has contacts in wildlife rescue it's certainly me. Only I panicked myself, the visitor was so tiny it was going to need to be fed SOON, and I momentarily blanked. Then I remembered that there is a dedicated wildlife rescue/sanctuary nearby, and I called them. They were at our house within half an hour and took our tiny guest back to the shelter where he's been fed and fussed over and will, if all goes well, be released back into the wild next summer when he's grown.

    Ladies and germs, meet Lucky.



    Lucky is a baby mink. He (gender is assumed, my husband couldn't tell what it was) is barely six inches long from that sweet little nose to the tip of his little tail. There were only five tiny, sharp teeth in his mouth, which means he's not quite weaned and definitely not ready to leave his momma yet. He became comfortable with DH very quickly and liked being scratched behind his ears. DH fell in love, and if he'd known how to keep the little guy alive we'd have another permanent family member. I love my DH so much sometimes. I've made this picture into my desktop, because he's just the most adorable thing I've ever seen and it makes me so happy to know that he's going to be alright.

    Keep the little guy in your thoughts, and if you have an animal shelter nearby, please don't forget to give them a little of your time or a donation if you are able to.
    What colour is the sky in your world and how high of a dosage do you need before it turns back to blue? --Gravekeeper

  • #2
    So...effing...cute.

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    • #3
      *squeels in delight!*

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      • #4
        Squee.

        Kudos to hubby. Lucky little guy.
        I don't go in for ancient wisdom
        I don't believe just 'cause ideas are tenacious
        It means that they're worthy - Tim Minchin, "White Wine in the Sun"

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        • #5
          Awwww.....

          So glad you were able to get him to a wildlife shelter so that he can go back out into the wild!
          "Even arms dealers need groceries." ~ Ziva David, NCIS

          Tony: "Everyone's counting on you, just do what you do best."
          Abby: "Dance?" ~ NCIS

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          • #6
            Quoth AdminAssistant View Post
            Awwww.....

            So glad you were able to get him to a wildlife shelter so that he can go back out into the wild!
            This is his new home, for anyone who is curious.

            Hope for Wildlife.

            They really are amazing, and most of the people who work there are volunteers.
            What colour is the sky in your world and how high of a dosage do you need before it turns back to blue? --Gravekeeper

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            • #7
              Wow! Thank you for sharing this story with us :-)

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              • #8
                Amazing save! He is soo cute.

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                • #9
                  *is overwhelmed by the cute*
                  Driver Picks the Music, Shotgun Shuts His Cakehole.
                  Supernatural 9-13-05 to forever

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                  • #10
                    Quoth mharbourgirl View Post
                    This is his new home, for anyone who is curious.

                    Hope for Wildlife.

                    They really are amazing, and most of the people who work there are volunteers.
                    There's a TV show following Hope for Wildlife on Oasis HD in Canada. I don't know if it broadcasts on any channel outside Canada or not.

                    Here's a clip.

                    Really makes me want to go down for their open house this year.

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                    • #11
                      Quoth mharbourgirl View Post
                      He became comfortable with DH very quickly and liked being scratched behind his ears. DH fell in love, and if he'd known how to keep the little guy alive we'd have another permanent family member.
                      at least until it became aggressive....as they do when they grow up

                      why wild animals do not make good pets

                      Other than it being illegal in almost every state-
                      Keeping a wild animal in captivity is extremely stressful to the animal. It is inhumane to keep a wild animal as a pet if one cannot meet the behavioral, social, nutritional and psychological needs of that animal. Most people simply cannot provide this and compromise the welfare of the animal.

                      from the fur commission:
                      Domesticated mink do not make good pets. While dogs and cats have been selectively bred for pet-quality traits over thousands of years, domesticated mink are livestock that have been bred for clothing and oil and life on a farm. They retain many of their aggressive traits. Mink have very sharp teeth and claws and can inflict nasty injuries on their handlers.* They are also carnivorous and so need a high protein diet. Given the chance, mink will eat your pet guinea pigs, rabbits and goldfish.

                      If you have heard that mink make good pets, it’s misinformation. We only know of one owner who successfully raised a mink in his home and even he has been unable to reproduce that success with other mink from the same and subsequent litters. Mink have not been selectively bred for pet-quality, so FCUSA does not recommend you attempt to hold and raise them as pets unless you are willing to give, at the minimum, 20 years to the project.
                      *my great uncle ran a fur farm-raised mink, he would love to be able to get back the three fingers that a mink bit off and ate. Yes an adult mink can and will bite your fingers off. And mind you these are non-wild mink, wild mink are more aggressive no matter how "cute" they are they are still a wild animal-key word there is wild, where they belong.
                      Honestly.... the image of that in my head made me go "AWESOME!"..... and then I remembered I am terribly strange.-Red dazes

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                      • #12
                        Off topic, but I read that as "my great uncle was a farm-raised mink".

                        In my defense, I blame the hangover.

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                        • #13
                          SQEEEEEeeeeeeeee *faints from the cute overload*

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                          • #14
                            Adorable!!! My grandpa used to raise minks too - they're adorable when babies, not so much as adults.

                            Your husband rocks.
                            The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away.

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                            • #15
                              Cute overload, kindness overload.

                              You and your DH did good.
                              Seshat's self-help guide:
                              1. Would you rather be right, or get the result you want?
                              2. If you're consistently getting results you don't want, change what you do.
                              3. Deal with the situation you have now, however it occurred.
                              4. Accept the consequences of your decisions.

                              "All I want is a pretty girl, a decent meal, and the right to shoot lightning at fools." - Anders, Dragon Age.

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