Ooo I’d love to work with this guy!
I’d never call it lesser 🥰
Lesser in size, but not in cuteness!
Much like the least weasel
Aww least is even worse than lesser! 😀
Portable anteater sounds like a mark in the positive attributes column.
The greatest baby anteater!
I learned to tube feed the baby bunnies today and now I’m going to always think of anteater tongues when handling the feeding tubes. 😄
That totally looks like an anteater tongue! How did the bunny feeding go?
Less scary than I thought. Bunnies die of stress absurdly easily, so I kinda avoided them before.
The biggest part of it is making them go to the bathroom, since they can’t do it on their own, which I can go into in great detail, should you desire to hear it. There were some really crazy things to learn about, but I understand most people may not care to hear it! 😁
I got to release 3 into the back yard so we could make room for a bunch of new patients. That is always fun. First 2 were ready to go and jumped out on their own, last one needed some encouragement.
After peeing and weighing the itty bitty babies (around 30-40g, eyes still closed), I needed to tube feed them 13% of their body weight and track of their weights went up or down since their last feeding.
Peeing them first is crucial so we get the correct body weight. Rabbits pee a ton and can’t relieve themselves without stimulation, so we typically get close to 6% body weight of pee out of them! For a 150lb person, that would be almost 10 pounds of pee, or just over a gallon! Those poor bunny bladders! 😧. It can really distend their bellies and can make it look like they have bloat, but they just need to tinkle really bad.
The feeding tubes are soaking in boiling water to get them clean and make them pliable. I fill up a syringe with bunny milk, burp the feeding tube and make sure all the water and air is out. I grab a bunny baby and check how much formula it needs.
To get the tube in, you grab bunny in a way you can keep the front feet from knocking out the tube, and use your finger to fix the head in place so it doesn’t wiggle around. This isn’t me, I need all my hands to do all this. I didn’t use a towel, just one of my fingers to keep the paws down.
I put some surgical lube on the tube, and then start inserting it at either side of the mouth; gotta get past those incisors! If bunny is cooperating and I had good aim, the tube will start going down. We make marks on the tube so we can get a visual reference. The tube will bottom out in the stomach, which you can feel, but a reference mark also lets you see if bunny is pushing out the tube while working the syringe. If it backs out, you can get it into the lungs, which, no good. So if I see it backing out, I can push it back in. Here they used tape, but we sharpie mark the tube.
After a small squirt to make sure the tube got to the tummy and not the lung, I slowly dose to the determined amount, and then slowly remove the tube.
It was kind of scary since I never tube fed anything, but it was really simple once the tube finds the right spot. Most bunnies didn’t fuss. You can really feel the full belly afterwards and then they go back to sleep full, happy, and healthy.
After a small squirt to make sure the tube got to the tummy
is that a small squirt of air, like in human medicine? do you listen with a stethoscope to listen for the gurgle to hear if it got where it should? this is so neat dude. thanks for giving us such a detailed explanation
No, it’s the formula. We don’t want to introduce air, as that can give them bloat.
I felt it was pretty obvious when it was in the right spot. They seemed to calm down once the tube passed where it could go to the lungs.
They’d have the same reaction as we would when we swallow wrong, so just a tiny squirt would show the tube wasn’t in right.
I was nervous to tube feed, but the bunnies were pretty calm considering what was going on. There are ways they can get hurt during this, but testing equipment properly and using your eyes and common sense really minimized any potential trouble. I was surprised how relatively uncomplicated it was, though I did only do less than ten bunnies. I’m sure I will see some crazy stuff and encounter issues at some point. Our patients come in all states of damage.
I enjoy sharing the stories with you all. I get apprehensive about some things, but I want to show you all that getting involved with this isn’t all that bad and can be very rewarding. Holding a happy, full tummy bunny as it goes back to sleep is just as satisfying as it sounds.
OH RIGHT i saw an owl last week and took a horrible photo hold on
edit DONE
Wow, that sounds intense and also really cool. Thank you so much for sharing! So what do the baby bunnies do in the wild to relieve themselves if they can’t do it without stimulation? I’m guessing mom helps?
Yup, momma has to stimulate them. You can really feel how swole they are, but they’re stuck like that. We tickle them with a tissue to get them going and you can feel their belly muscles start squeezing so they can relieve themselves. It looks like a ton for how tiny they are!
Once they’re a bit bigger, they figure it out and can go when they want to, but when they’re tiny, its super important we help them out when momma isn’t in the picture.
That’s adorable, and I am so glad they have you to help. Thank you for taking the time to chat!
Tamanduas don’t have teeth like other mammals. Instead, they have a long, sticky tongue that helps them collect insects from nests. In the near future, Leia’s favorite meals will definitely be termites and lots of ants.
What’s their ideal climate?
they are anteaters after all.
They are native to Central and South America, so tropical to subtropical.
Edit: this baby was rescued in Costa Rica.
Well there goes my idea for non-chemical insect removal /s
Interesting, thanks! What’s your favorite thing about them?
Haha, it would be hilarious if you got an anteater for pest control.
I think I love their CVS-receipt-looking tongues. I mean, just look at that glorious thing!
(If you are not from the U.S., CVS stores are known for printing ridiculously long receipts)
Just look at that tongue hanging out:
Exhibit B:
You’ve got to think outside the box! 😉
Genius!
Lol we have the technology to build temperate climate anteaters! 😁
Ants everywhere:
This guy is super cute. Are they cuddly? Or I suppose you try not to bond with the wild animals like pets? Or can they be domesticated?
This one was found without a mom in the wild, dehydrated and struggling to breathe - she was properly taken care of and will be in an incubator in the nursery (she is that little still!). I am not sure if she will be releasable, but that’s always the goal if possible.
And to be clear, I’m just posting the pics - I wish I could have rescued this little baby, but I am far away from Costa Rica, where they found her. I just happened to visit this very rescue center during my travels, and now I get their updates on social media. They do amazing work!
Oh my goodness gracious, she’s so SO cute!!
fewer anteater
Loooong mlem
Just enjoying some licorice 😉
Ahh the old long-tongue jaguar - extra cute.
That was hilarious!
Xenarthrans are soooo weird lol I love it
