The Most Unusual Rescued Critter

What is the most unusual animal or critter you have ever rescued?

I do not know if you would call these pets. I am certainly sure they would not be considered domesticated.  Would you believe I have been known to rescue worms?

Yes, worms! You know, plain old garden variety type found in North Alabama.

Sure I bet you have a few questions about 'Why worms, right?'  It goes back to when I was very active in rescuing Boston Terriers.

Yep, that is where it all started, rescuing becomes not only a passion, but when you have to pull back and stop rescuing dogs, you will discover, your obsession to rescue has some peculiar side effects. 

I never turned down fostering a Boston that needed a safe place. After almost five years of intense submersion into the world of rescue. I was not prepared to just put the brakes on and stop.  I guess I noticed how far gone I had gone off the edge, when I started noticing poor little worms trying to find a safe place to go. When they became flooded out from the edge of the patio, they mistakenly would get on the patio, not knowing the cement would dry them out, as they, in a desperate crawl, took them further and further from the safety of the soft mud.

I was so saddened the next morning, when I would be letting out the dogs only to see dead and dying dried up worms. I started picking them up as soon as I saw them,  throwing them back into the damp garden dirt. So it would go every time it rained I would look for them.  It made me feel good to go into a rescue mode. 

Then I read an article about composting kitchen scraps, using worms to quicken the composting. The worms could turn kitchen scraps from waste, into wonderful black dirt to use in my indoor plants. 

Yes, I did remove the worms first. No, I did not name them. It was an interesting experiment rescuing other species. Yes, I do still rescue the garden worms. Now I just put them back in the soil. Instead, I have moved on to "rescuing" fishing worms from the local gas station. These are much larger and reduce the kitchen scraps (no meat or grease) and shredded damp newspaper, along with left-over veggie scraps pureed in my blender, at a much faster rate. We are talking months, not hours. 

But I know I am not alone, I bet you too have rescued some odd or unusual critters.

Recently I read a story of a lady that had the experience of owning a hedgehog. She had it when her kids were young.  She had found that where she worked, there was a customer was raising them. She decided one would make a wonderful learning experience so she brought it home, in a cage. She then said, unfortunately her husband an avid animal lover did not bond. When asked why she replied because it bit him… So back to the breeder it went. Doesn’t this sound just like the many stories we hear every day of why adopted dogs are returned. Because the whole family was not in on the selection of the new pet……

What is your unusual rescue story or experience?

Edited by Julie Bradford