You Always Knew How to Fix My Broken Day

I've mentioned my squirrel Wonder a few times, and I will probably mention him more in the future. However, today, I want to share a special story about another animal companion who has deeply impacted my self-care journey.

During the pandemic, I rescued a raccoon. She was brought to me by a very close friend when most of the wildlife centers were either closed or full to capacity and couldn't take in more animals. This little raccoon was just 4 weeks old. Her mother had been hit by a car, and she was wandering around on the side of the road. As an avid animal lover, I couldn't say no to my friend and took her in.

After ensuring she didn't have rabies or distemper, I decided she was good to keep until her release day. During this time, she certainly earned her name "Bad Girl." For me, she became more than just another wildlife rescue. Having been rescuing animals for many years, she was my seventh raccoon in recent years, and at one point, I even had a set of triplets – two boys and a girl. They were feisty little buggers!

The pandemic brought chaos to our household, taking an emotional toll on us all. My daughter Brooklyn, who is medically fragile and developmentally challenged, needed social interaction and came into contact with COVID three different times, resulting in three quarantines. Then, my oldest son Hayden tested positive for COVID and got really sick, leading to our fourth quarantine over Christmas. Eventually, I had to take medical leave from work, a place I had been with for ten years. All these changes deeply affected us.

Bad Girl seemed to sense all of this. She used to come over to my bed, cuddle with me, or lay beside me and play with her toys or chew on her strings. Anytime I had a migraine, which was frequent at the time, she would never leave my side. It was very difficult to keep her in her cage and prepare her for release when she could sense my sadness and pain. She wanted out and was very different from any of my other raccoon rescues.

Having her with the triplets didn't work either – that was pure chaos. So, Bad Girl had to be kept separate, but she couldn't be by herself as she was destructive. She stayed with me, and a bond was built that made releasing her incredibly difficult. She ended up staying for two years, becoming a crucial part of my self-care journey.

Pets, even unexpected ones like Bad Girl, can offer a unique and profound form of companionship and emotional support. They sense our emotions, provide comfort, and help us navigate difficult times. My experience with Bad Girl is a testament to how these amazing creatures can become essential aspects of our self-care routines.

With Love Heather