On a cold day in April, Stephanie Brady got a call from someone about a tiny animal stuck at the bottom of their drained pool. Brady, founder of Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (WWWRC) in Amarillo, Texas rushed to the home where she got the call. What she saw in there was a baby opossum practically blending in with the pool’s plaster floor.
The pool wall was too slick for the baby to climb out. He has been battled alone there all alone for a few hours.
He was cold and wet. It was rainy weather on that day and temperatures were hovering just below 40 degrees. So, the baby opossum needed to get dry and warm immediately. Luckily, Brady had heated seats in her car to carry the opossum with cozy.
She took the opossum to the Wild West Wildlife where he was further examined and treated for health issues. Brady said that he eats like a champ. He is just a little nugget, she says. The little one should be ready to be released once his weight gets a pound increased.
Brady explains that unlike raccoons, deer and other mammal opossum mothers don’t usually come back for their babies once they have fallen off. Mother opossums can have up to 13 babies at a time. With so many babies, clinging to her back as she moves from place to place, it seems like she doesn’t notice if one is falling off. That’s why the baby was alone there.
Wild West Wildlife cares for over 500 rescued opossums each year. They say if you found abandoned opossums wait for the rescuers to come and save them.
When the baby opossum gets older enough to release to the wild, he will be released. Brady is always ready to protect her and other babies with their needs. Let’s hope he will get a better life!
