Fly Free, Stupid Red Bats!

We are anxious to get the hell out of here, dammit!

There comes a time in the life of any orphaned red bat when they have to make their own way in the world. For 3 especially stupid red bats, that night was tonight.

The photo you see to the left is my handful of red bats, anxious to join their counterparts in the wild. They wasted no time. I took them outside, and they immediately took flight. They looked amazing! It doesn't surprise me, because they've been flying circles in their flight tent for the last couple of weeks.

What?! I have to feed myself?!!!!

So, why didn't I release them sooner? Well, one bat was a bit slow in catching on to the concept of feeding itself. Finally, just this last week, she caught on. Success! Perhaps they can actually fend for themselves in the wild!

Sadly, I didn't get any photos of them flying away, primarily because I lack actual photographic skills. The only reason these photos are in focus are thanks to an expensive, idiot-proof camera. Thank you, Canon Rebel!!

Note: Out of extreme paranoia, I made Jim put away the ducks first. Ducks will try to eat just about anything. If one of this little red beasties hit the ground, it could have been bad.

Note: I am a trained wildlife rehabilitator and I've had the pre-exposure vaccination for rabies. No wild bat should ever be handled barehanded by the general public. If you do find a sick, injured, or orphaned bat, you should immediately call a local wildlife rehabilitator and follow their instructions. Please do not attempt bat rehab without the appropriate training and paperwork. Thanks!

Stupid Red Bats

Despite considering myself officially "retired" from wildlife rehabilitation, I still find myself occasionally suckered back into taking care of bats. This time, a couple of friends found a mother red bat (with 3 pups attached) on the ground in their yard. 

The initial concern was that she had broken a wing, but a quick examination determined that she was healthy. I took her, placed her in a tree, made sure she was calm and all her pups were attached, and left her for the rest of the day. When evening came, she flew away, leaving her pups behind. I left them out all night in the hopes that she would return for them, but no luck. By the way, this is fairly typical behavior for red bats.

Since then, I've been raising the orphaned pups, and they've almost reached adulthood. This may be the best luck I've ever had with red bats, thanks to a new milk replacement formula that's available this year. The three are now hanging out in a large tent and learning how to fly. Stay posted for photos of the pups all grown up...

Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls 2012 Season Starts this Weekend!

Yes, I totally suck at blogging. Lots of new and interesting things going on in my life. I'm going to concentrate on roller derby for now.

Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls are kicking off their season with a tournament! Now this isn't just any tournament. The B-Cup is actually for leagues' B teams, which is nice because B teams don't normally get opportunities to skate in tournaments.

 Now, for the (maybe) two people who read my blog... you might know that I had a serious knee injury at the first practice of the season. I tore my MCL and sprained my ACL. As a result, I was strictly off skates for 6 weeks for recovery and physical therapy. I'm just glad that it didn't require surgery.

But check out the photo. That's me skating in a scrimmage post knee injury. I'm back! And... I'll be skating in the B-cup with my beloved Code Blue Assassins!