We always get asked why were called Badger Run Wildlife Rehab? Do we have a badger? Well, years ago one of our first rescues was an American Badger. After hunters shot his mom, the little 4 week old orphan was brought to us. Raised alone, he imprinted on his human caretakers, meaning he had no fear of people & therefore, could not be released back to the wild when he grew up (or so we thought). So, we named him Dhru & trained him as an Animal Ambassador. Dhru did about a dozen presentations, delighting guests with his playfulness. However, as he matured, he began to react differently, not liking crowds at all. We began to “un-train” him and taught him to hunt. After 2 months, Dhru was ready for a test. We fasted him for a few days, then put him in unfamiliar territory & had 2 very brave “strangers” approach with food. As hoped, he backed away, snarling. With that success, we felt confident in his ability to survive in the wild and he was released. We will always miss seeing his fuzzy face peeking around his den box, but we are thrilled that he is able to live his life in the wild as he should.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 20:46:12 +0000