An injured bobcat that was found hiding in an Espanola resident’s garage last week is recovering from severe dehydration and physical injuries at Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre in Val Caron.
Manitoulin Ontario Provincial Police received a call for service at 5 p.m. that day “from a member of the public stating that there was a bobcat in their garage, and they needed help removing it.”
Officers were dispatched to the residence where they located the animal, which police noted had been injured. Police contacted Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre and Gloria Morissette, founder of Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre, made the trip out to Espanola to transport the injured animal to the Val Caron rehabilitation centre.
Morissette said by the time she arrived, OPP had cornered the wild animal and managed to put a garbage bin over it to keep it from running off. She said police weighed down the bin with gardening tools and stones before departing, leaving the resident to watch over the now captured bobcat until a Turtle Pond representative arrived.
The cat was severely dehydrated and quite thin. and had injuries on her hind paws and a gash on the face, Morissette said. The animal only weighed 4.3 kg and had a head injury, and an injured back leg and injured toes.
After examining her teeth, Morissette estimated the bobcat was only about a year or so old.
“The first thing is to stabilize her,” Morissette said. “So that's what we did for the first few days.”
The cat’s dehydration was so severe that she did not urinate for the first 36 hours in Turtle Pond’s care. To ensure the animal's body is stable enough to accept the nutrients, the rehabilitation centre uses a special oil to help the body recover without overwhelming it.
Reintroducing food into the animal’s system too early in treatment can lead to refeeding syndrome, and could even be fatal.
Luckily, once things got moving and the feline was able to urinate, the centre was able to slowly give the bobcat easily digestible food, little bits at a time.
“It’s quite a process, but she’s responding and she's been stable enough to take her in for a vet visit,” said Morisette in an April 2 interview.
In the week since she’s been at the centre, the young cat gained around 150 to 200 grams, “which does not sound like a lot, but it's in the right direction,” Morissette said.
Veterinarian Dr. Nicole Baran and her team performed x-rays on the bobcat and determined that none of her injured toes were fractured, and the swelling would be able to heal with time, and rest.
The gash on her head was the main injury of concern, and they've sent off some blood samples to eliminate any underlying neurological issues or health problems. The animal is on medication to help alleviate the pain in her foot, and a few other medications to help her heal and feel more comfortable.
“She’s doing well. She’s gaining weight so we're keeping our fingers crossed and we're positive, we're hopeful that she's going to make a good recovery,” said Morissette.
It’s impossible to predict how long recovery will take, as each case and animal is unique. Morissette, Baran and their teams will carefully monitor the bobcat's responsiveness and weight to know when she is ready to go back home.
“We just let them tell us, you know,” she said “The gashes on her face are already starting to heal. We don't see any sign of infection or anything like that.”
Once her strength is back and external injuries have fully healed, the Turtle Pond will release the cat within one kilometer of where she was found. Morissette said its key to ensuring wild animals are released in a safe, green area they are familiar with to ensure successful reintroduction to their territory.
Surprisingly enough, the centre had received a previous call, two weeks before this one, about an injured bobcat which had been reportedly hit by a car, also in the Espanola area. Halfway en route, Morissette received another telling her to turn around, because the cat was no longer on the side of the road.
The police were notified at that time as well, and did arrive on scene to try and locate the injured animal. The cat had seemed to walk off up and over a nearby bank and into a hilly area. Police went out searching for a bit to try and locate the animal but had no luck.
Once Baran did the x-rays, it became a bit easier to assume the two cats may be the same because the nature of the young cat’s injuries could reflect being hit by a car.
Releasing wild animals
For instances like this young feline, “because she's already an independent animal,” Morissette said a cold release is done, and the centre’s job is complete once the wild animal is returned to the wild.
Rehabilitation centres only track recovery and reintegration when the released animals have been cared for since infancy. Called a “soft release”, it typically involves a feeding station where staff would observe the newly freed animals to offer them a fighting chance at getting familiarized with their environment.
Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre’s goal is to release the wild animals back into nature with the least amount of human interference possible. That’s why keeping the injured cat in an isolated, quiet area, with only a few designated staff, veterinarians and volunteers able to interact with her is crucial to the young animal's recovery.
The rehabilitation of wild things, while recognizing their wildness, is best for all parties involved, said Morissette.
“Because they are wild animals, I just feel they need the respect of being wild. We don't try to make pets out of these guys,” she said.
Protocols such as not naming or talking to the animal and avoiding eye contact can help minimize the stress of the situation and ensure caregivers don't start treating them as pets.
Bobcats are not too rare for Morissette as she's definitely seen her fair share in the past 20 years, but it has been a bit unusually popular within a short amount of time. She said in Northern Ontario, bobcats typically are in the west side of Sudbury, towards Blind River, Massey and Manitoulin Island because it's more of a temperate climate.
Turtle Pond Wildlife Rehabilitation centre asks anyone who finds an injured wild animal to call them before immediately interfering. There are sometimes instances where it’s best to not get involved, and oftentimes there can be diseases people need to be weary of.
“A wildlife rehabilitator can sort of guide you as to the next best steps,” said Gloria.
Turtle Pond is the only wildlife rehabilitation centre North of Parry sound. There are a few specialized centres in surrounding areas, such as Thunderbird Wildlife Rescue in Thunder Bay and a veterinarian in Sault Ste. Marie, who also “dabbles in raptors,” said Gloria, but Turtle Pond remains the only one who “takes in everything.”
“We do the best we can,” said Gloria. “It’s something you commit to and once you do, you sort of got to stick to that commitment.”
Kaitlyn Lemay is an Algonquin College journalism student on a placement at Sudbury.com.