Well despite the chilly weather, spring seems to have arrived. Five baby jackal pups were collected from Greytown to join their feline counterparts, the serval kittens and a very young jackal buzzard chick arrived from Shafton Grange in the Karkloof. We have decided that the saying "cats rule, dogs drool" certainly applies. While the servals took to bottles easily and quickly and were generally a pleasure to have around, the jackals were very slow on the uptake ensuring that Israel had a milk bath every time he had to feed them – they definitely believed that we were out to poison them, perhaps as a result of years of persecution of their kind. Speaking of which, it was very heartening to hear how the farm labourers reported hearing the pups crying in the burrow and, after waiting for mom to return, helped the farmer dig them up and arrange for FreeMe to collect them. A big change from the time when the only good jackal was a dead one. The jackal buzzard chick was just too adorable, but has been sent to Ben Hoffman at Raptor Rescue. Baby raptors, along with cranes and several other bird species, imprint on anything that feeds them and get very attached to their handlers. This attachment can lead to a very possessive individual who can only be released back into the wild after a long and difficult rehabilitation process (if they can be returned at all). With sharp talons and rather smelly droppings, they do not make good house pets. Ben will try and get one of his own buzzard pairs to adopt him, allowing him to be raised as a fully functional wild bird. So if you are a cat person and are feeling rather smug, or if you prefer our canine friends and would like to stick up for the underdog, please sms donate freeme to 48748 to donate R 10. If on the other hand you like both equally then do it twice. Add a liking for our little grey ball of fluff, Fugly, who is just too flipping (what else) cute, then three times is mandatory.
On a sadder note, there is a great mystery surrounding the admittance of a duiker female from Amber Valley. As the estate is a relatively safe area with speed limits and no free roaming dogs, the duiker get very tame. This little lady was found lying between some bushes with multiple abrasions and lacerations, which we feel were mostly likely the result of a mva, although this is difficult to prove. How did anyone reach such a speed, that they did so much damage, and if they did hit her, why did they not call us to collect her immediately. All of the residents must by now know that FreeMe run a 24/7 emergency service. It was touching to see the concern and sorrow of the people who brought her in and who, subsequently, had to be told of her death. They felt as though they had lost a friend.
News and image supplied by FreeMe.
