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News > January 2007 > Wild
Lives: On Ammonia, Texas Wildlife, and Warmth
 Wild
Lives: On Ammonia, Texas Wildlife, and Warmth
by Lynn Cuny, Founder & Executive Director
With the recent winter storms dominating our
landscape, we are fortunate if we can curl up under the covers
or wrap up in a heavy blanket on the couch when the mercury
outside plummets and the sky turns gray. We heat up hot cocoa,
maybe pop popcorn, and crack open a book or watch TV with
the family. While the frosted windows testify to the season's
chill, we are safely cocooned at home. "Snug," as
they say, as a "bug in a rug."
As freezing temperatures cross the state,
we aren't the only ones hunting for warmth: Denning animals
outside — raccoons, opossums, and skunks, to name a
few — also start looking for a little extra warmth or
easily-available food supplies when their normal prey is burrowing
just a little bit deeper.
Every time a cold snap makes its way across
Texas, area residents are startled by opossums rooting about
their trash cans and raccoons exploring beneath porches and
atop roofs. If the homes are properly sealed and their trash
secure, they are able to enjoy these sightings. If the animal
gains entry — either from above or below — homeowners
will have some work to do.
Often people call Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation
asking us to trap and remove the animals who have sought out
the apparent safety of their homes. Most times, if homeowners
are patient and work with us, we are able to talk them through
some simple repelling techniques that can encourage these
native cohabitants to move back out into the wild. Household
ammonia and rags, some cayenne pepper, and a battery-powered
radio can often do the trick far better and safer than a trap.
 Most
times, our nocturnal visitors just need a little time and
space before they are on their way. They do not need to be
trapped and released into unfamiliar territory. Too often
people spot wildlife in their yards and rush for the phone
as if a monster from their childhood closet had reanimated
right in "their" backyard. People do not easily
welcome the idea that native wildlife has long been the original
residents in our neighborhoods.
Learning to view wildlife from a new perspective
is not always easy. When someone has grown up in a home that
routinely viewed animals as objects or a nuisance, it can
be difficult to consider our relationship with the animals
from a fresh angle. Perhaps that person never considers the
innate beauty of wildlife. Perhaps their singular thought
is that the animal must go.
Regardless, a change in behavior is needed.
Not only is trapping in most cases illogical, it can be terribly
inhumane. (As long as there are wilds outside, there will
be wildlife to populate it. When this ceases to be, how much
poorer we will be!) Many times, people move these animals
far from their den and away from established family members.
The disorientated animal must struggle then, alone, to find
a new source of food and water, all the while hoping they
aren't run off in some territorial dispute.
If the animals aren't gaining access to your
house, it is best to leave them alone; if you are having problems,
there are many alternatives to trapping. One of the procedures
Wildlife Rescue recommends involves discouraging the animals
with unpleasant scents and noises — and then sealing
off the unintended entrance. The sound of human voices from
the radio and a strong, foul smell can drive the animals away.
 When
you install wire mesh to cover the hole, make sure not to
seal animals inside your house by mistake. A little flour
scattered around the area will help you observe whether or
not the animal has left. To ensure the animal has left the
area, place flour on the inside of their hole or den. You
can look through the wire mesh you have covered the hole with
to see if anyone has been trying to dig out.
To the friends of these animals past, present,
and future, and those doing your part to make the environment
safer for native wildlife who want nothing more than to be
left in peace — those who have labored with us to create
a safe and welcoming environment for so many different species
— may you know the satisfaction of serving Life on some
still night, wrapped beneath blanket or quilt. May it settle
somewhere deep within you and keep you warm always.
Lynn Cuny is the founder and director of
Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation in Kendalia, Texas. She
is the author of two books, Through
Animal Eyes and Through
Animals Eyes, Again. This is her first installment
of a monthly column about human-wildlife relationships.
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