Orphaned puppy rescued from the side of the road: only at home did they realise they had brought home a wild animal

It must have been quite a surprise to the well-meaning family who took home the orphaned puppy, who soon turned out not to be a dog at all.

A Massachusetts family was on their way home when they spotted on the side of the road an orphaned puppy. They didn’t delay, immediately rushed to the aid of the abandoned animal and took it back to their house. At home, there was great shock when it turned out that the new arrival was not a dog, but a wild animal: a coyote.

The cub found a home in a wildlife centre

The family notified the Cape Wildlife Centre, one of the local wildlife sanctuaries. Experts have determined that it is an Eastern coyote cub, who most likely recently separated from his family. They examined the little one, who was found to be healthy. At the same time rabies has also been ruled out, so the dog-turned-coyote was taken to a separate ward to “recover” under calm conditions after the incident.

You have a partner

At the end of her rehabilitation, she was joined by a coyote cub from Rhode Island. After both of them were vaccinated, they were placed in a common outdoor cage. As the centre’s staff explained, their aim is to raise the two little coyotes together so that they have the opportunity to learn the natural behaviours of their breed. They will be helped by animal rescuers who will do their best to pass on the behavioural patterns and skills they teach to their parents.

It could have gone wrong

Although the story of the coyote cub found ended well, it was mainly down to luck. Because if he had spent more time with his finders, perhaps bitten or scratched a family member, the organisation would have had to put the animal down to make sure it was not rabid (a sample of the animal is tested in such cases).

As no one would want such a tragedy to happen, the organisation has urged people to always call for help and seek expert advice first if they find a wild animal or are unsure about the species.

This is not only true for exotic animals, as it also occurs regularly in our country that people who want to do good but are incompetent want to rescue little orphaned deers, foxes and wild boars, which in reality have only been abandoned for a short time by their mothers. That’s why you should always call first and make sure they really need help!