Critter Cottage Is Growing and Needs Your Help

Critter Cottage is growing and needs your help!

Critter Cottage has made some huge strides this year in its mission of animal rescue and wildlife rehabilitation. But there’s still one major hurdle before it can be considered a standalone rescue and rehab space: release cages.

Before wildlife can be successfully released, they need time to acclimate to outdoor life after spending a couple of months being pampered as babies. Three kids are now ready to transition to an outdoor space, but they need an enclosure to keep them safe while they learn what it means to be wild. Release cages allow rehabbed opossums to get used to outdoor temperatures and sounds, inclement weather, and maybe learn to catch some bugs or a lizard or two, all while in a safe enclosure with shelter, steady meals, a water source, and minimal human contact. Then, after a few weeks acclimating to life outside, they'll officially be ready for freedom.

Release cages are not cheap, but the best solution for Critter Cottage’s current needs is a prefabricated catio with modifications for the opossums' well-being and to meet state regulations. After sourcing materials, a conservative estimate for an enclosure is $600. But the more funds raised, the better and larger the enclosure will be.

It’s without a doubt been a tough year at Critter Cottage and I’m still coming to terms with losing Dottie, a petite senior tortie rescued from a dumpster off of I-95. She was incredibly sick when I took her in but had made what seemed to be a full recovery. That sweet girl had a small army of well-wishers and donors on her side who made all the difference in getting her the care she so desperately needed. The final step before she was ready for adoption was a dental to remove her last four teeth. Unfortunately, while she was in surgery, a large mass was found in her throat, which would have created difficulty eating and breathing, so on what was supposed to be a celebratory day for her, I instead had to make the difficult decision to let her go. In the end, her vet bills totaled nearly $1,500, with all but $305 of that paid with the help of your incredibly generous donations.

It's been a busy year for sure, with lots of ups and downs, but your donations will help ensure that Critter Cottage is here for the next dumpster cat or old opossum that makes its way here.