Saving Otters

Here’s a bit more about Bandit, from Pat who emailed me yesterday from Karanambu.

Apparently, Bandit’s attitude has improved somewhat in recent months.  Pat reminded me that the raccoon had been neutered last June, just a few weeks prior to my visit.  At the time, she wasn’t sure it had made much of a difference.  I had said to give it a little time.  It can take months for testosterone-driven behaviors, like unpredictable aggression, to change after castration.  Then again, some of this behavior is learned.  I also recommended that Bandit be left in his pen on the days when Karanambu Lodge is full of visitors given that he is still a wild animal with sharp teeth.  Also, raccoons harbor a type of parasite, a roundworm known as Balisascaris, that can be fatal to people.

Pat and Diane took my advice, but as you can see from the photos, the raccoon is still out and about more often than not.

This is yet another reason I’m working establish a one-health conservation program at Karanambu.  Preventive medicine for all, such as regular de-worming, would be part of the effort.  Indeed, the first phase of the program will be to identify key indicators of health for the animals, the North Rupununi ecosystem, and its people.  We may find that Balisascaris, or other parasite infections, are problems that we need to monitor.  (Please consider a donation to help me get this program off the ground!)

Bandit’s surgery was done by Dr. Bruce Langlois, a veterinarian who heads up a volunteer spay and neuter program that is adminstered by RAM: Remote Area Medical.  RAM itself is an interesting story.  Thirty years ago, in the mid ’70’s, its CEO, Stan Brock, wrestled alligators and jaguars for the television cameras–in his bare feet–while Marlin Perkins narrated what was happening on “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom”.

I met Stan at Karanambu several years ago.  Here he is standing next to the small plane he flies while in Guyana.  Stan and Diane have been friends ever since he started RAM.  As it turns out, Stan grew up in Guyana and made the decision early on in his career to find a way to help the Amerindian people living in the country’s remote areas.  He created a non-profit, RAM, in order to fly medical doctors into the Rupununi to provide basic medical care.  Soon he turned his attention to Americans.  His organization was recently in the news for hosting a jam-packed free health clinic in Los Angeles.

Here is a link to RAM–but before you go there–here’s what Pat wrote to me about Bandit.  She also sent me two photos with captions, also below.
 http://www.ramusa.org/index.html

From Pat:

“His [Bandit's] behavior has started to tone down somewhat, which is not to say he isn’t still into everything and anything, but the aggression is slowly turning to hospitable behavior.  The Bandit still enjoys his oat meal breakfast, but now before breakfast he enjoys having his tummy scratched.  He is also spending most of his days doing what raccoons do best, sleeping in a tree during the day, then coming in in the evening to await his fish escort to his house [pen], where he spends the night. He has a new playmate in the form of a 6 month old puppy. The boys take turns playing tag on their morning walks, before the Bandit decides that it’s nap time.  Check out the pictures Lucy will be posting of the Bandit and his new interest in Office Management.”

Here Bandit is investigating the wireless router at Karanambu.  Pat’s caption for him: “Huston I may have a problem here!”

Bandit soon moved on to Pat’s computer.  Here caption for this one: “Can someone please tell me how to scroll these otters off here?”