Salvatore Wildlife Rescue

06/23/2026

This miserable little Eastern Chipmunk arrived today as a transfer from a nearby Animal Control Officer!

The finders have had QUITE the day- they let their dog out for a bathroom break in the early hours of morning which triggered a full day scramble because the pup came home with a mouth full of rat poison that their neighbor had put outside! In the middle of all of this, overwhelmed and understandably very very busy while contacting vets and animal poison control and the like, they found this lethargic unmoving chipmunk so asked their ACO for assistance because their focus was on getting their dog through this incident alive. Their suspicion, contextually, is that she also got into the poison (that their neighbor has since assured them they've completely removed).

Things don't look spectacularly promising for her here as she is incredibly weak, but we'll do everything we can to try to stabilize her and get her through this. Keep her in your thoughts!

This saga really highlights why some of the biggest pets-only animal hospitals in the state are advocating right alongside rehabbers for the cessation of anticoagulant rodenticide usage in the state. Because they aren't just a problem in wildlife- domestic pets (and small children 😭) also get into them!

Sending my love to this family, who took the time to make sure this little chipmunk had a chance at recovery on what was probably one of the most stressful days they've ever had. What beautiful beautiful hearts you have. I know I'm not alone in rooting for you and your sweet dog! 💕🐶💕

06/23/2026

Mondays are one of my busier days of the week due to our personal family schedule, moreso until August because I am enrolled in a class through one of the local hospitals so that I can learn how to exercise safely with my newly discovered bone density issues. What techniques are safe, what to avoid due to their risks in someone with suboptimal bones, etc. A How to Not Break While Exercising class, if you will, which I am hoping will give me the knowledge and confidence to resume exercising (whenever things ease up and I have the time to, anyways) as I have been worried about exactly that so haven't been as active since my diagnosis. On top of that and our normal Monday schedule shenanigans my youngest "graduated" elementary school during a very sweet 4th grade recognition event at his school's end of year celebration/performance! He even volunteered to be one of the student hosts during it, explicitly because public speaking makes him uncomfortable and he doesn't care for that so wants to overcome it with practice. So proud!

Consequently, it was a very quiet social media day. Before I tuck into bed I did, however, want to share this little House Mouse's intake photo to remember him by since he didn't live long enough to make it to a proper introduction post. This is something which happens every now and then even though I try hard to honor and share each little one's story. Losing an animal never feels good, but there's something particularly sad when they're lost so fast and so young.

Rest easy, friend.
And goodnight to all of you!

06/21/2026

06/21/2026

Happy Father's Day from Cabot (and Pete)!

Although petite, they both have 💅 them fancy nails 💅 which indicates sexual maturity in male Eastern Painted Turtles so these gents might very well be dads themselves. Why do male painteds have such long front claws? Because fluttering those fingers (complicated jazz hands, basically) is a key component to winning the ladies!

06/20/2026

Our Haverhill girl was squeezed into the vet today for surgery and x-rays! Under anesthesia the two toes that had been effectively amputated off by the foot wound were removed and the wound debrided for optimal healing and then rebandaged. She is left with two toes on that front foot (the fifth was not there and must have been sheared off in the initial hit) and she is now getting dedicated incubator time to help her turtley slow metabolism process out the sedatives a bit faster. Once the wound has fully granulated in she will be tested in water to confirm that she's able to navigate and move well while swimming, a non-optional skill for an aquatic turtle species.

Her rads looked good, with all internal bones in normal locations and conditions, and she is carrying seven eggs!

If you'd like to help cover costs for her surgery (which came in just under $100) or her further care any amount is appreciated 😊

06/20/2026

Since it is pool season and I started the day fielding a pool-related contact I wanted to talk about pool critter savers! Many thanks to Jenn, one of my 2026 finders, for sending over photos of hers (pics 1-4).

Pools are, to put it bluntly, death traps for small animals if they fall in and don't have a way to get out. Jenn mentioned that in the days leading up to installation of hers that they repeatedly pulled small mammals out of the pool, but since then animals have been able to DIY out of it themselves using these. They come in different shapes/designs, are sold by various manufacturers and go by different names, but if you search for "pool critter savers" they should by and large all come up. Jenn set hers up in the pool opposite to where the jets are so that any residual current from the jets propels animals towards the savers instead of away from. There are also ones designed to sit in front of the filter so animals who fall in don't get sucked into that whirlpool of doom! Just make sure you install them close to the edge, but not in direct contact with it so that animals don't get trapped behind them, lodged between the saver and the wall of the pool.

Pic 5 is a photo of this morning's contact, a baby bunny who fell into a pool without these and was treading water for an unknown, but certainly quite long, length of time. At the point this photo was taken she had been out of the pool recuperating for *two full hours* and still looks to be on death's door. That finder was more than an hour away from us so she ended up going to a rehabber closer to them for oxygen and supportive care, but it won't be a surprise if we hear that she doesn't end up making it. Her suffering, and possible death, would have been avoided with one of these installed!

One exception I will note- if you scoop an AMPHIBIAN out of your pool, especially if you suspect it didn't just fall in so was in there for any length of time, that kiddo will benefit from at least a few days in rehab to be treated for chlorine toxicity as pool chemicals are pretty nasty for our friends with the super porous skin. Contact us or another rehabber who works with them for placement.

06/20/2026

Update 2: the goose was not seen, but there is a possibility that it moved into and is hiding in someone's yard. If you are in that area in the near future and see it please let us know! 💕🪿💕

Update 1: someone who lives on 9th is heading to look!

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View and then possibly pickup/transport assistance request: Leominster

A finder contacted me (and Animal Control) last night to report a grounded Canada Goose with a wing injury in the parking lot of the Franco American club on Water St x 9th St.

It has been long enough that the bird may already have been picked up or moved on so if anyone is in the area can you look to see if it is still there? +/- try to snag it and get to me in Sterling for triage so it can go to someone with a federal waterfowl permit (oversized fishing net or throwing a sheet or blanket over it may be the easiest ways to contain).

If goose is still present in that location and/or you were able to contain it please let us know here or send a text message to 978-422-1126! Please note, the rehab line is text messages only- calls go straight to voicemail so are not faster than texting.

06/20/2026

Accepted this big gal today, who was found in the street last night in Haverhill during the torrential rain- impressed and thrilled that the finder saw her and recognized that she wasn't a rock in the middle of driving during all that weather! (Just goes to show how obvious it ought to be on nice days, amirite)

She is real hefty because she's a big old girl (who weighs close to a pound! Where's MIKA when you need him because 🎵 BIG GIRL, YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL 🎵) who feels chock full o' eggs and, at first glance, didn't appear too badly injured. She's got the obvious plastral fracture with a minor abrasion on the very outer edge of her carapace right above that. And then a laceration on the foot in that same location. Wait, no. That's a bit more than a laceration- that goes clear through the foot, full thickness, cuts through the bones and everything. Oh boy. Her wounds were cleaned and then cleaned again (then cleaned again for good measure, good thing the latest order of flushing fluids just arrived!). Medical grade honey was applied to sanitize and wick out anything that's not supposed to be there while keeping the site moist and protected. The foot was bandaged into place and a request for radiographs plus surgical consult has already been submitted.

She's been medicated and hydrated and is so active that she made many an escape attempt during treatment so all that is good! It feels a bit crass to say cross your fingers given the state of hers, but, well, you know. 🤞

06/19/2026

And just like that (some of) the big kids are on their way! I think before now the quickest a grey squirrel soft release began was when it took the first kiddo something like 30mins to leave after the door opened. Today? TWO! Two minutes! 😮

Granted, it's a couple hours later and not everyone has left the cage yet, which is definitely the more anticipated result based on prior experience. But still!

This group is comprised of Tuft, Murray, Looney Tune, Ever Hopeful, and Twiggy (all donor named 🫶). They came because of falling from their nest, getting leaf blown off a roof nest that looked like leaf litter, two were orphans from The Groton School, and then sweet Twiggy the emaciated fly strike in her mouth girly who was found and very gently "fetched" by a dog then transferred here (with a sister who did not make it, RIP) from Nutting Stream Wildlife Rehab Clinic.

As is the case with soft releases, they are welcome to use the cage for as long as they feel it is necessary- since they are a diurnal species it will be open and accessible during the day and then locked closed overnight for the safety of anyone who comes back to snooze inside the nest box.

Good luck, lovelies!

(This is intermittently showing as "muted due to copyright claim" despite being one of the music tracks Meta's own reels Edits app recommended 🤷‍♀️ Sorry if this is silent when you are watching it, hopefully that sorts itself out shortly!)