Rocky Start Rescue

10/17/2026

I forgot to introduce a pretty cool arrival from a few weeks ago. Meet Jerry Garcia! He comes with quite the story:

Like every good story, there is a hero, a journey, a damsel, and a happy ending.

Our hero in this story is the kick ass finder who lives in Chicago (yeap, actual Chicago) and participated in a sail boat race with her team from Chicago (I can't believe it either) all the way to St. Joe where the race ended. Much into their journey, a stowaway emerges from inside the sailboat, causing an understandable amount of surprise. The fugitive (er, damsel) was then contained and thoughts of what to do next were tossed about, such as keep him, toss him overboard like a rogue pirate, or find a rescue.

Luckily for JG, option 3 was the winner but how the heck do you find a rescue in the middle of lake Michigan?? After much googling, our hero finds our number and texts me photos with a short version of the story. I say "wait he just came out from inside the boat?" Yup. "Can you keep him safe until tomorrow and get him to me?" Absolutely!

And so, his long journey came to an end here at Rocky Start. The sailing team are grateful Dead fans, and requested his name be Jerry Garcia, which I find adorable. Where did he come from? How the heck did he get on the boat? Is someone in Chicago (Chicago???!!) looking for their pet boa? The world may never know.

The end!

If you've read to the end and are inclined to help with his care, donation links are posted. If you're in Chicago and missing a little somebody, hit me up!

10/15/2026

As the year winds down (sort of) and things go back to normal (well not really), we are taking advantage of the late season nice weather and squeezing in just a few more releases.

This little chip was brought to me a few months back as a baby that was found alone on a porch and cold. The finder warmed her up and got her to me and she did wonderfully. Liz released her on my property while I was out of town last week.

Have a great life, chip!

10/14/2026

Hi friends! We haven't done a wishlist Wednesday in a little while but the rescue needs your help! We are in desperate need of wet cat food, wet and dry kitten food, and cat litter. I am on my last bag/case of each left. We also fly through potty pads, paper towel, rescue disinfectant, laundry soap as well so those are always appreciated!

If you can donate, please do so through our Amazon wishlist, I'll put the link in the comments!

Here's a photo of sweet baby Cher for tax! She's the sweetest little girl and absolutely gorgeous. She will be ready for adoption VERY soon!

10/12/2026

We are so grateful for such a wonderful turnout this past Saturday! Can't wait to see all of the great photos!. ❤️

Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who made it out to our shoot today! We had a great time with all of you, and we were able to raise $250 for Rocky Start Rescue, plus whatever went directly to Raquel for the raffle tickets!
Thank you to Pet Supplies Plus Battle Creek for always providing us space for these shoots! We appreciate it so much!

10/01/2026

Last night I snuck in a quick release, possibly the last of the year for these guys! We released them all and one simply decided the grass was too wet and it couldn't survive under the conditions offered.

RIP, you poor soul.

😂😂😂

Seriously though, I have never had one do this on release and although I've seen other rescues post about it, it was very funny to see myself with one of my own.he stayed like this for so long we eventually had to scooch him to a safer place to "die" and leave him be to talk to Jesus. Survival instincts are kicking in at least! 😂

If you have brought me opossum babies this year, we have released 40 ish and will be overwintering 16 more (yay me)

09/30/2026

UPDATE: I added a photo of him post op in the comments. Talk about immediate relief, I couldve cried not seeing him in pain anymore. ❤️

Friends!! Ray needs your help! If you've been to an event with Ray Snarles, you know how absolutely important he is to me. About a week ago, he began acting strangely and was aggressive towards me, showing signs of pain, then began not eating. I was really concerned, as I couldn't see what the issue was by looking at him. I talked to a few friends and we thought possibly an abscess was making him feel this way. I brought him into our vet this morning and she sedated him and found a HUGE abscess in his neck, which he was expertly hiding from me when I would approach him.

They are draining it, flushing it, and starting him on some medication but we weren't expecting this expense, and we need to raise some money to help cover it! Any amount is so appreciated and I'm just so relieved we can fix this.

Raccoons and other wildlife are pros at hiding illness and injury, often times it's like a puzzle trying to figure out what's going on. I'm glad I followed my gut and got him into the vets office because this could've killed him had the infection gone systemic.

But how did Ray get the abscess?????
Glad you asked! Raccoons are NAUGHTY! He got bored about 2 weeks ago and peeled a nice opening in his enclosure back because he didn't like it intact anymore??? I don't know, he's a criminal, not a contractor. I didn't think much of it because he acted fine and didn't have any open wounds but then about a week or so later, he was acting sick. I didn't think to put the two together until a few days ago when asking for ideas.

This is reason 264 why raccoons do not make good pets!! They are destructive just for funsies and if they CAN hurt themselves, they WILL. And when they are hurt, they lash out making it extremely difficult to see what's going on. We had to sedate him, which is always risky with exotics and wildlife but being that he was already not well, the risk was larger.

I'm so thankful he's going to be ok, although he will be on antibiotics for a while now. I'll leave donation links in the comments for anyone who is able to help us out with his bill.

Rocky Start Rescue is a registered 501(c)3 non profit animal rescue licensed by the MI DNR to rehabilitate wildlife and holds a scientific collector's permit for non releasable animals on a case by case basis. Ray is registered with the state and is an educational ambassador, NOT a pet.

09/21/2026

Meet Andy and Ollie! These boys were part of a cruelty case and the shelter was out of space, so they came here to be safe and loved. After a few days of being here, I noticed something was *off* with them. They stopped eating, were nauseous, and began sneezing and hacking. I brought them into my vet and we started them on a broad spectrum antibiotic and an anti nausea med. They are now eating more than they were, but still not all the way back yet.

These two are the sweetest, goofiest boys (peep the carrier photo 😂) they absolutely share one singular brain cell and sometimes it is misplaced. They will make amazing kitties for a lucky family. They will become adoptable once they are healthy and their vetting is done!

All Species Kinship fielded the call, facilitated the rescue and is sponsoring their vet care so huge thanks to them! If you'd like to donate to food or litter, we always need that!

https://venmo.com/code?user_id=3917959168787966759&created=1732625854

https://cash.app/$RockyStartRescue

09/20/2026

After a year that would make anyone rip their hair out, I was looking forward to the Michigan Wildlife conference today and I had the best time with other rehabbers and colleagues! We sat in on six lectures overall, they provided lunch, and after we got to tour howell nature center. It was my first time and I am just in love with the ambassadors, the facility, and the enclosures. Thank you to everyone who made today happen, it was the most fun I've had earning CE credits 😂

09/16/2026

I am looking for 1 or two more release sites for opossums! Please comment below if you can help!

I know there were several kind people this year who expressed interest in having opossums released on their property when they were ready. I have several ready to go!

You must have 4 acres or more, have an easily accessible water source, no hunting neighbors, appropriate habitat, and be outside of city limits.

Please reach out on this post if you'd like to host a few opossums this year!