This story is from Karen Inman.

This raccoon story is about T.C. (Tender Care), and all of the perils that he had to endure at the ripe old age of 3½ months. Poor little guy had 3 broken legs (left front leg and both back legs). A homeowner had built a barbecue pit in his backyard and this poor little guy was dragging himself into it every evening looking for food. The homeowner had been watching and feeding him for about a week and did not know what to do or who to call.

When we received the call, Randy (my husband) went to capture the raccoon. When Randy approached him he would brace himself against the back wall of the barbecue pit and put up a fight. He was very wild and had found a way to protect his food and himself from others.

The next morning I took him to my veterinarian. She x-rayed him and found that the front leg had a clean break and was actually healing in place. However, the bones in the back legs were already fused and healing, but the bones were not positioned in place. She told me that the only thing that could be done was to re-break the legs and pin them. She did not want to do this and advised me that the best thing to do was to let her euthanize the poor little guy. He had worked so hard to survive I just wanted a little bit of time to think about it and to see what he might be able to do for himself. So I took him back home, put him on antibiotics and decided to work with him for a while. I just wanted to give him a chance. If he would never be able to walk, then he could be euthanized later. I decided that I would work with him for a month and then we would reevaluate him and make some decisions. My veterinarian agreed.

I started working with him the next day and he was so wild I had to use gloves to do anything with him. He only had one front leg that was not injured, so he would lay on his back, look at me upside down, and pull himself around with his good leg, Oh, and put up a good fight. I worked with him for a month and I saw no signs of improvement. He was not trying to stand or trying to walk, so I thought it would be best to have him euthanized. The next day he was trying to sit up, so we started all over again. This went on for another month and no more improvements. So I made arrangements to have him euthanized the next day. However, the next day he was sitting up against the back of the cage. It was almost like he knew what I was going to do and he was saying, “Look at me I am trying.” This went on for another month and of course I was extremely attached by now.

I decided that there would be no more talk about euthanizing this raccoon. I knew that all of the bones were healed and I did not care if he ever walked, but he needed to at least try to stand on his legs. So, I went out, gloves and all and said, “T.C. it is time to stand up.” I reached into the cage, grabbed him, and stood him up on all 4 legs. He stood there for a moment, wobbled like a baby trying to take its first step, and then he sat back down. Once he realized that he could stand, he started taking one step at a time. It took him about 6 months but he was walking and going wherever he wanted to go.

His back legs are stiff and he can not climb, so he was never released. After he started walking good, Randy built him special ramps for his cage and for what ever reason this guy decided there was no reason to be mean anymore. He is the sweetest raccoon. We are able to handle him without gloves and if Randy does not give him his snacks before going to work every morning, he sits there and cries and chatters until someone pays attention to what he wants at the time. T.C. is almost 9 years old now.