My Magnificent Mom & Her Earth Day Bobcat Release

My mom rocks. Have I mentioned this yet? She works with raptors and bobcats and whatever other critters find themselves in trouble. Well, she volunteers her time…nearly 40 hours a week, tirelessly, for the last ten years.  Who else buys their mom a gauntlet for her birthday? A gauntlet, other than being the glove tossed down to challenge a rival to a duel, is also the term to describe a super thick leather glove to protect a handler’s forearm from the talons of magnificent birds of prey.

An Osprey getting care

Here is video footage of her handling Tskili, (pronounced keelee) the Majestic Great Horned Owl in her capable care. (She’s not wearing the fancy gauntlet I gave her – hmmppfff! lol) She’s going to make minced meat of me for sharing this! That’s what she used to say to us when we were brewing for discipline…I’m thinking she picked it up when she lived in England. 🙂

With a North American Kestrel

But I digress…She now invests her time at a Wildlife Rehabilitation Facility in Oregon called Chintimini.  The number and variety of animals that pass through their doors is impressive, and include myriad songbirds, waterfowl, hawks, eagles (yes, bald eagles, too!), falcons, beavers, foxes, bobcats, rabbits…any hapless creature who falls prey to either the harsh challenges of nature or to the careless or even malicious activities of man.

Chintimini is run purely by the loving hard dedicated work of volunteers and funded by the generous support of people who appreciate the efforts of humans to undo the challenges we’ve created for wildlife.  Please consider making a donation today. They are treating and rehabilitating ever growing numbers of orphaned and injured wildlife every season. Thank you.

Bottle feeding an orphaned fox pup

The Chinitmini team recently started having more success with bats, as my mom was the first to enthusiastically volunteer to submit to the painful and tedious series of shots to protect against rabies; a requirement for anyone wanting to handle these fascinating flying mammals.  She brings many home for focused care and attention and even built a fly cage for them. Sadly, the number of wild animals who pass back through the out doors into the wild is not 100% of entrants.  Some animals are permanently injured and would not be able to fend for themselves if released.  Some of these animals, mainly the raptors, are then recruited to be “Ed Birds” or Educational Birds, and goodwill ambassadors to the surrounding community. My mom has been enlisted to be a handler of several of these birds, and I get happy chills when I get to see her working with them and building trust, as she has been a life long lover of all things wild and beautiful.

Mom feeding a baby Large Brown Bat

But the BIG news…which I am thrilled to share here…is a special successful release that took place on Earth Day, April 22nd.  Two orphaned bobcats had come into their care last June and it had been decided to keep them over the severe winter.  The event was covered by a local news station and you can read their article here as well as see video of their “quick” release.

I watched with glee as I saw them bounding away from their caregivers…who they thankfully considered captors, indicating they will have a much better chance at survival. 🙂 I love that they set them to their freedom on Earth Day; reuniting Mamasita Earth with two of her wonderful, wild children.

Photo of bobcat kittens taken by my mom, Karin. All photos of her taken by other volunteers at Chintimini