B: Where to begin, dear readers? With our staff slowly being driven crazy by feeding almost 100 squirrels every four hours, we rejoice at the intake of adult anything-else. While we do not rejoice at the injuries, we do appreciate working with more sedate adult opossums and Eastern screech owls.

A: Our adult opossum came in after being left in a humane trap overnight by a well-meaning citizen who was trying to trap a groundhog. A good tip to remember- when attempting to trap a diurnal animal, make sure to remove the traps at night, or you’ll end up trapping all sorts of nocturnal furries. Trying to trap something nocturnal? Um, good luck.

B: No matter what you set your nocturnal trap for, there is only one animal you will catch: raccoon.

A: It’s like they run around looking for traps to walk into.

B: They will do anything for a free meal; even endure the tight space of a Hav-a-Heart. But back to the ‘possum. Upon admission, I found severe lacerations across his lower jaw, both on chin and in the mouth. Areas of his gums were ruptured and he had even snapped his lower right canine in half, all in an attempt to batter and chew his way out of the metal trap. A three-day run of anti-inflammatory pain medication and all the soft food he could eat allowed his wounds to slowly knit together, but it appears as if infection may be setting in.

A: Due to the complexity of an oral procedure, we are very grateful for our volunteer vet who has offered to take a look at the big guy’s wounds for us. With any luck, the infection has not reached the bone and we’ll be able to clean him up, patch up the wound and send him on his way before it gets too cold around here.

B: Another patient I hope the vet will be able to look at is an Eastern screech owl I admitted on Wednesday. A red-phase juvenile male bounced off the windshield of someone’s truck and now suffers from a badly fractured right radius and ulna. While the x-rays I took may look daunting, I have confidence in our vet, as I have seen her fix far worse injuries with fantastic results.

A: The poor little guy seems completely unaware that his wing is out of order; he is still trying hard to be intimidating and convince us that he is ready to go. Screeches rely on their ferocity to deter would-be predators who may see this pint size bird as being a quick and easy meal.

B: Another ferocious-looking animal was admitted recently, though this gentleman crossed our doorstep several weeks ago. A common snapping turtle was unfortunately mistaken for a speed bump and has a quite nasty-looking injury to his carapace.

A: The wound consists of a hole in the shell from which muscle tissue was protruding. The soft tissue was severely infected and much of it was necrotic. It required some intensive multiple cleanings and I got a chance to use some new techniques including a dextrose soak and anti-biotic impregnated gauze padding.  I am very pleased to report that the animal has shown some terrific improvement and now with the combined efforts of myself and our previously mentioned vet, he is headed for a complete, if lengthy, recovery.

B: While it does appear that we will be over-winter several turtles this year (as with every year), we are fully prepared to make the most of their stay, giving them ample amounts of nutritious foods, UV lighting and whatever medications and/or bandage changes they require. We are also still in preparation mode for our 13th annual Open House, but I hear that Alicia has also been preparing for another event.

A: That’s right! I’ve been gearing up with great excitement for Travilah Oak Day! Join us on Saturday, October 11th from noon to 4pm at the Potomac Oak Shopping Center in North Potomac for a day of raffles, entertainment and education. All proceeds will benefit our own Second Chance Wildlife Center and I will be running the SCWC educational display. Thank you to the Travilah Oak Community and the organizers of this fun-filled event.

B: Fall begins a hard time for us as donations dry up when the patient load decreases. Our Open House is our largest fundraiser of the year and with wonderful supporters like those running Travilah Oak Day, we can hope to glide through to next year without much worry. Remember Second Chance Wildlife Center when you are trying to reduce your tax liability at the end of the year. You pay fewer taxes and we get to keep our doors open for your wildlife needs.

A: Now that we got your next few weekends planned out for you, we should go finish up our chores for the day. See you at Travilah Oak Day!!

B: And at the Open House! TTFN!

Questions? Comments? Email Alicia and Brittany at nut.house.ab@gmail.com. Want to learn more about Second Chance Wildlife Center? Simply go to www.scwc.org.