Wild Things!

AHHHHHHHH! An alligator in Foresthill park! Just kidding!

Friday afternoon we went to our local park here in Foresthill. The Friends of the Library was sponsoring Wild Things - a non-profit animal rescue organization that rehabilitates and houses rescued animals. They have animals from all over the world - many of whom were being kept as illegal pets in squalid or unsafe conditions by the wealthy of our country. Many of the animals they care for are animals that were hurt in the wild, or found as babies in the wild and cannot be returned to their homes due to inability to hunt/find food on their own.

Wild Things! will come to your school, library, public event or private event and introduce some of their animals, educate us about the animals and how we can help our animal friends and facilitate interaction between an animal and those in attendance. It's pretty awesome what they do, but sad that there is even a need for it.


This beautiful North American Barn Owl's wing was broken and now it cannot hunt for itself. Can you believe it only weighs about half a pound?!?


This is a 4-month old Red Fox, native to the Eastern United States. Its' mother was hit by a car, and although this baby fox is perfectly healthy, it cannot be released into the wild. Red Foxes were brought to the Western U.S. for the fur trade in the 1800's, and some escaped captivity. In the meantime, they have decimated native fox populations by decimating their food supply, so the government made it illegal for the Red Fox to be released. So this girl is stuck in captivity for life.

We also saw a Brown Lemur from Madagascar, 2 Hissing Cockroaches and a Rattlesnake. The kids were entranced by the animals. Especially when it was their turn to pet the alligator!