One hot day in August 2018, retired police sergeant Dave Ferrell went for a bike ride on the St. Marks Bike Trail near Tallahassee, Florida.
As Ferrell was riding down the trail, he started hearing distressed cries from an animal. Ferrell stopped and looked around for the source of the cries and found a tiny baby raccoon. The raccoon was all alone and covered in flies. He was clearly very sick, and he desperately needed help.
“He was in bad shape laying in the bike trail, flies all over him,” Ferrell wrote on Facebook. “He wasn’t long for this world.”
Ferrell looked around for the baby’s mom, but she wasn’t in the area. Ferrell knew the baby wouldn’t make it if he left it on the trail. And so, he put the little raccoon in his backpack and started riding.
To Ferrell’s surprise, the baby raccoon immediately relaxed when Ferrell put him in his backpack. He seemed to understand that Ferrell wanted to help him.
“He really relaxed and enjoyed the ride in that CamelBak,” Ferrell wrote. “He just kind of chilled out back there!”
As he was riding, Ferrell called the Tallahassee Police Department and told them what he found. They said an officer would meet him at the trailhead and take the little raccoon to St. Francis Wildlife Rescue.
When Ferrell got to the trailhead, Lieutenant Mike Abbey was waiting for him. Ferrell passed the raccoon to him, and Abbey gave the baby animal a ride to the rescue center.
The workers and volunteers at St. Francis Wildlife Rescue immediately got to work treating the little raccoon. The raccoon was covered in fly egg parasites, which the workers cleaned off. They also gave the raccoon plenty of food and water.
“We are happy to report the baby raccoon was cleaned up (he had a ton of bots & fly larvae on him) and is doing GREAT!” the City of Tallahassee Police Department wrote on Facebook. “Thanks to Sergeant Ferrell for sharing!”
Everyone on Facebook loved the story, and they were amazed by Ferrell’s kind actions.
One worker at St. Francis Wildlife Refuge, Emily Shaw, took a particular interest in the baby raccoon. She nursed the little guy back to health, and she watched over him to make sure he was doing okay.
“He is doing fantastic!” Shaw told The Dodo. “He almost certainly would have died if [Ferrell] had not found him.”
When Dave Ferrell saw a little animal in need, he didn’t hesitate to help him. Thanks to Ferrell, the baby raccoon has gotten the care and medical attention he needs, and he’s on the road to recovery!
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