The possies are in town.

Give a big welcome to some of the new residents! These little guys are spending some time in the outdoor pre-release cage until they are big enough to head out on their own. We've juggled so many animals around this year that I'm not positive, but I think they started with Laurie, then went to Nancy who got them to the point where it was time to go outside. There are 5 of these cuties in there. Two have decided to take up residence in a squirrel nest box while the other 3 have chosen the the more spacious den box.

In other news, Pebbles has developed a swollen foot. It looks like an abcess, however due to her past myclplasma history, and the fact that it's a very difficult bug to get rid of, it's very possible a re-occurance of it. We cultured it last night to check, but in the meantime she will be going back on doxycycline and has been separated out from the main group ...with a little company of course. Her sister Porcelain and Lucky and Ducky are with her also. Lucky is a little gimpy on a rear leg but there is no swelling or external injuries, so hopefully she just sprained it while climbing around the big pen. She'll be getting doxy anyway just in case, as the mycoplasma is contagious. And I'll be keeping a close eye on the rest of the gang that was in the big pen with them!

A very quick update....

OK...what started as an apparent leg injury on Porcelain appears to actually be Mycoplasma Arthritis. Her sister Pebbles and Soldier also appear to have it as it is contagious.

In a nutshell:

Mycoplasma arthritis is characterized by painful swelling of the joints on the feet, wrists or arms, and reluctance to move due to pain. The infectious agent, which is a special type of bacteria, infects the bone at the growth plate, destroying the ability of the bone to elongate as the animal grows.It then blows out into the joint or soft tissues around the joint, where swelling is associated with accumulation of yellow pus in the tissues.Since the bone and joint have been severely damaged by the infection by the time that these signs are apparent, the prognosis for these animals is poor with respect to potential for release, even if treatment has some effect. This condition can be quite contagious within a rehabilitation facility.The source of the organism is not clear, but probably it is carried in the upper respiratory tract of coons.The organism enters the body through a wound, such as the gums at tooth eruption, or through respiratory tract.

So they are on Doxycycline now. Porcelain was the most affected and the use of her 2 affected legs is slowly improving. Pebbles was started when she showed signs and it appears to have stopped it's progression and Soldier, whose rear leg was slightly affected has pretty much regained normal use of his leg so I am hopeful for all of them....and will be keeping a close eye on the whole gang for any signs of lameness now! It's going to be a month of medication for all of them though! So far Lucky and Ducky remain just that, and no signs from Doc, Sis and Trooper who are all together with Porcelain and Pebbles. (knocking on wood now!)

Soldier is improving and no signs in Sammy, Brim and Spit, although Brim has refused to eat the last few meals so now I have to worry why! No other symptoms and no abnormal poop thus far, so I'm hoping for an upset tummy issue right now.

Rocco is doing great! I'll try to get pics of his stumpy little cuteness! He's like a big round tic with stumpy fat little legs sticking out.....very cute and was getting ready to join Soldier et al until strange illnesses started breaking out! So for now...he remains a loner for a little longer. Better safe than sorry!

The last little boy from the Animal Rescue League that 2 girls had brought home, and Springer, the girl found in the walls of a home, are both great and doing fine.

Then there is Spencer. A very cute 2 week old that literally dropped in on a tree house during a little slumber party out there! He's not injured.....I think he's lucky, the tree house broke his fall. After an unsuccessful attempt to re-unite him with a mom he has made his was safely here! Thanks to Julie and her daughter for taking such good care of him and getting him to me. He is doing great and eating like a little piggy!

And finally 3 more 4week-olds (the same size as Springer and the ARL boy). One was found orphaned this past weekend and the finder kept him until finally contacting Laurie. She got him settled and re hydrated for me until I could pick him up, and despite diarrhea from being fed regular milk for almost a week, he's none the worse for wear and is now enjoying a proper diet of raccoon formula! The other 2 are girls that fell from their tree....probably after mom disappeared & they got hungry enough to crawl out. A re-unite attempt was unsuccessful and Martha was kind enough to get them to me all the way from Gloucester yesterday. One girl is doing fine, the other has some head trauma from the fall. She had a bloody nose and mouth and swelling around her nose area. Hopefully that is the extent of the trauma. Her jaw is working fine and after being re hydrated and getting some Metacam for the pain and swelling, she is resting comfortably and the bleeding has stopped. It's a slow process getting her to take anything by mouth since her nose is all plugged up between the swelling and dried blood in there. As we all know when we have a cold, it's hard to breathe and eat at the same time! Right now it's just a "wait and see" game...with nothing apparently broken, it's a matter of controlling the swelling and letting her rest. I'm optimistic...she gets pretty annoyed when I wake her up to give her fluids! We'll see how much more eager she is once she starts getting full strength formula....it tastes a lot better!

I think that covers all the coons for now!